William Thornton was an architect of British origin, born in the British Virgin Islands in the year 1759 and died in 1828. He is primarily known for being the architect responsible for the design of the United States Capitol in Washington D.C. Thornton won a competition in 1793 to design the building, and his proposal, which combined neoclassical and baroque elements, was selected as the winner. However, his design was modified, and he did not oversee the construction of the building. Despite this, he is still recognized as the original architect of the United States Capitol.