William F. Thornton Grave

DR. WILLIAM THORNTON (1761–1828) was a physician who did not practice medicine. He won the competition for designing the U.S. Capitol in 1793. As an amateur architect, he also designed the Octagon House, Tudor Place and Woodlawn. Dr. William Thornton, Architecht of the CapitolHe won a gold medal for outlining a method of teaching the deaf to speak. His talents as a painter, novelist and writer, coupled with his social graces and enthusiasm for horse racing, placed him in the center of Washington social life.