Benjamin Henry Latrobe was best known as the architect of the United States Capitol. His career as surveyor, architect, engineer took him to many places in the US, and in close contact with Thomas Jefferson. Also known for designing the Richmond Penitentiary, the Bank of Pennsylvania and the Baltimore Cathedral, as well as the historical study and annotation of the Susquehanna River Survey Map. Latrobe played a major role in the creation of the American technological community, publishing many scientific papers, technical reports, newspaper and journal articles and essays. Latrobe moved from Richmond to Philadelphia in late 1798 to execute his first great commission, the Bank of Pennsylvania. He sporadically wrote in the journals printed in this volume while in such cities as Philadelphia, New Castle, Baltimore and Washington, D.C., where he served as architect of the U.S. Capitol. He kept journals more regularly while in New Orleans during the last year of his life - he died in 1820. In addition to recording daily events, Latrobe made observations on a wide variety of topics, from the origins of yellow fever to slavery and black music in New Orleans. His pen-and-ink drawings and watercolors compliment the text.