After Kletting produced more detailed plans, they were made available to contractors interested in bidding to work on the capitol.
The submitted bids were opened December 3, 1912, at Salt Lake's Commercial Club with James Stewart & Company receiving the contract as general contractor on December 19, 1912.
P. J. Morgan was awarded the contract for excavation and grading the site, and the capitol's groundbreaking ceremony took place December 26, 1912.
A large amount of soil had to be excavated from the hillside, as the eastern side of the site was as high as the building's planned fourth story.
The excavation was done using a steam shovel which dug into the hillside filling its large dipper, after which it turned around and emptied the dirt into a temporary Dinkey train.
The small train then carried the soil to the nearby City Creek Canyon where it was dumped.
 After the building's base was graded and excavated, work on the foundation started.
The capitol was to be built of stone, with a concrete and steel superstructure.

By spring 1913 the foundation and basements walls were in place, and the steel columns and wooden frames for the concrete were being installed.
Numerous small shops and offices had been constructed on the hill surrounding the site to support the building efforts, along with numerous small railroad lines carrying stone, mixed concrete, and other supplies.
Contractors leased a right-of-way up Little Cottonwood Canyon, which originally held a railroad track from mines at Alta, and constructed a new railroad to carry granite from the canyon's quarry to the capitol site.
On April 4, 1914, Governor William Spry presided over the cornerstone-laying ceremony.
The cornerstone, dated 1914, was laid at the top of the southern steps, and was filled with records and photographs documenting the building's construction and Utah's culture.

By the end of summer 1914 the basement, second floor, and exterior walls were nearing completion.
The columns were being installed, and work progressed on the dome, including covering it in Utah copper.
The capitol commission urged the work forward, hoping the eleventh session of the Legislature would be able to meet in the building the following year.
But, as 1914 ended, work had not progressed enough and when the legislature met the next year, it did so in the Salt Lake City and County Building, until February 11, 1915, when the session was moved into the new capitol.
Even though the legislature was meeting in the capital, it took more than a year to finish the remainder of the building sufficiently for the executive and judicial officers to occupy the building.
After work was finished the capitol was publicly dedicated on October 9, 1916.
The original construction cost was $2,739,538.00 (equivalent to $44.3 million in 2018) and replacement cost is estimated at $310,000,000 (equivalent to $5.02 billion in 2018).
The capitol was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.
 It is included in the Capitol Hill Historic District, a historic district also listed on the National Register.
After Kletting produced more detailed plans, they were made available to contractors interested in bidding to work on the capitol. The submitted bids were opened December 3, 1912, at Salt Lake's Commercial Club with James Stewart & Company receiving the contract as general contractor on December 19, 1912. P. J. Morgan was awarded the contract for excavation and grading the site, and the capitol's groundbreaking ceremony took place December 26, 1912. A large amount of soil had to be excavated from the hillside, as the eastern side of the site was as high as the building's planned fourth story. The excavation was done using a steam shovel which dug into the hillside filling its large dipper, after which it turned around and emptied the dirt into a temporary Dinkey train. The small train then carried the soil to the nearby City Creek Canyon where it was dumped.  After the building's base was graded and excavated, work on the foundation started. The capitol was to be built of stone, with a concrete and steel superstructure.
By spring 1913 the foundation and basements walls were in place, and the steel columns and wooden frames for the concrete were being installed. Numerous small shops and offices had been constructed on the hill surrounding the site to support the building efforts, along with numerous small railroad lines carrying stone, mixed concrete, and other supplies. Contractors leased a right-of-way up Little Cottonwood Canyon, which originally held a railroad track from mines at Alta, and constructed a new railroad to carry granite from the canyon's quarry to the capitol site. On April 4, 1914, Governor William Spry presided over the cornerstone-laying ceremony. The cornerstone, dated 1914, was laid at the top of the southern steps, and was filled with records and photographs documenting the building's construction and Utah's culture.
By the end of summer 1914 the basement, second floor, and exterior walls were nearing completion. The columns were being installed, and work progressed on the dome, including covering it in Utah copper. The capitol commission urged the work forward, hoping the eleventh session of the Legislature would be able to meet in the building the following year. But, as 1914 ended, work had not progressed enough and when the legislature met the next year, it did so in the Salt Lake City and County Building, until February 11, 1915, when the session was moved into the new capitol. Even though the legislature was meeting in the capital, it took more than a year to finish the remainder of the building sufficiently for the executive and judicial officers to occupy the building. After work was finished the capitol was publicly dedicated on October 9, 1916. The original construction cost was $2,739,538.00 (equivalent to $44.3 million in 2018) and replacement cost is estimated at $310,000,000 (equivalent to $5.02 billion in 2018). The capitol was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.  It is included in the Capitol Hill Historic District, a historic district also listed on the National Register.
Utah State Capitol