Question: Why was the Texas Capitol built with pink granite?
Answer: Primarily because the native limestone prescribed by the original plans became discolored too easily due to its high iron content. Contractor Abner Taylor proposed using limestone from Indiana, but Governor John Ireland insisted on using stone from Texas.
The owners of Granite Mountain near present-day Marble Falls offered to give the state pink granite for the Capitol, but Taylor believed it would be too difficult to work with. Eventually, he agreed to use the stone on the condition that a railroad would be built from Burnet to the quarry and convict labor could be used to extract it.
