Chapter 11: Designing the Octagon
The Doctor Examined, or Why William Thornton Did Not Design the Octagon House or the Capitol by Bob Arnebeck Table of contents Chapter 11: Designing the Octagon Mrs. Thornton by Stuart 1804 In his 1914 history of the city, W. B. Bryan decided that because Thornton's statements "were not contradicted at the time," his September 21, 1798, letter to his colleagues proved that Thornton restored his design of the Capitol. He also cited the board's proceedings and correspondence in April 1799 as proof that in 1876 Adolph Cluss was wrong to dismiss Thornton as an amateur. That Hoban asked for drawings from Thornton proved that Thornton designed the Capitol. Bryan left unsaid that at the time Thornton was trying to get Hoban fired. Just as Glenn Brown did in 1896, Bryan melded Thornton's other architectural triumphs to prove that Thornton did indeed make drawings. But Bryan had more evidence for that. He could cite Mrs. Thornton's diary that was transcrib...