Iowa State Capitol Fire - 1904

Construction on the three-story Iowa Capitol building in Des Moines, Iowa began in 1870 and lasted until 1886. By 1904 the Capitol building was due for a restoration. The Capitol Improvement Commission was put in charge of the process. They were to install artwork, replace windows, install a new copper roof, re-guild the dome, and change the gas lighting to electricity. These restorations were commissioned in hope of improving the aesthetic of the building. Another reason was to update the outdated gas lighting system with a more modern system. An electrician by the name of H. Frazer was working in Committee Room Five early one the morning. He was drilling the walls to run the new electrical wires through, using a candle to provide light. He later left his station but neglected to extinguish the candle flame. This is what is thought to have started the fire.

The fire alarm first rang around 10 a.m. Community members and Capitol employees alike came together to assist the fire department to extinguish the fire. The fire was put under control around 6 p.m. that same day. Some newspapers reported that the fire had continued to burn for a few days after. An engineer working on the restoration project was credited with controlling the fire and preventing the spread to the entire building. Crampton Linley, the engineer, was in the building during the time of the fire. He went through the building shutting doors separating the wing of the Capitol. Linley died the following day after falling through the ceiling of the House Chamber while assessing the damage that the fire had caused. He was the only casualty from this event. His heroic actions during the fire prevented the spread to other parts of the building. This saved numerous lives and millions of dollars in damage. Linley did not live long enough to receive the recognition and praise that the community thought he deserved for his gallant action.

The fire spread quickly because the majority of the building support structures were wood, including the big dome. There were no water mains or standpipes in the building so the firefighters had to use rubber hoses that ranged from 300 to 1,500 feet long. The damage consisted of destruction to walls in the House of Representatives and significant damage to a number of committee rooms. “The water used to extinguish the fire damaged parts of the ceiling of the rooms and offices opening from the north corridor upon the main floor” It was estimated that this fire caused $300,000 worth of damage.

The damage to the north wing allowed Elmer Garnsey, the artist employed by the Capital Improvement Commission, to redecorate the areas as he desired. He used the disaster as an opportunity to change the design. The interior was the main focus of restoration after the fire. The exterior was not renovated until the 1980s. An exterior restoration project began in 1983 and completed in 2001 cost $41 million dollars. Visitors to the Capitol today can see artifacts from the fire.