Brown County Courthouse (South Dakota)

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Coordinates: 45°27′53″N 98°29′12″W / 45.4646°N 98.4866°W / 45.4646; -98.4866
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For the Federal courthouse in Aberdeen, see United States Post Office and Courthouse–Aberdeen.
Brown County Courthouse
Courthouse circa 1910, showing original stairway
LocationAberdeen, South Dakota
Coordinates45°27′53″N 98°29′12″W / 45.4646°N 98.4866°W / 45.4646; -98.4866
Built1904
ArchitectKinney & Detweiler
Architectural styleRenaissance Revival
NRHP reference No.76001718[1]
Added to NRHPJune 3, 1976[2]

The Brown County Courthouse is a historic courthouse in Aberdeen, the county seat of Brown County, South Dakota. It was built in 1904 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

History[edit]

Courthouse in 2017, showing first floor entrance

Columbia, South Dakota, was the site of Brown County's first courthouse until 1887 when Aberdeen became the county seat.[3][4] A dispute followed, and the county seat moved back to Columbia from November 1889 until 1890, after which Aberdeen permanently became the county seat.[4] After becoming the county seat, a wood frame courthouse building was built in Aberdeen.[5][6]

Work on a new courthouse in Aberdeen began by 1902,[7] designed by architects Frank W. Kinney and Menno S. Detweiler.[8][9] It was built by E. Miller of Le Mars, Iowa, and completed in 1904 at a cost of around $120,000.[2][10] Two half blocks of land were donated by several property owners and a street was removed for the courthouse site.[3][5] The courthouse was formally dedicated on March 15, 1904.[3][11] The old courthouse was demolished in 1905 and the site was turned into a park.[6][12]

In 1974, the sandstone stairway that led to the second floor entrance was removed to improve accessibility; it was replaced by a plate glass entrance on the first floor. The courthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 3, 1976.[2] In 2014, after suffering deterioration, the stained glass window around the old entrance was removed, cleaned, and reinstalled.[13]

Architecture[edit]

The dome, one clock face, and statue of Justice as seen from the west

The courthouse is a three-story building in the Renaissance Revival style. The building is made of Berea Sandstone that was quarried near Cleveland, Ohio.[2] The front facade faces south and is divided into thirteen bays. The entrance is flanked by two 20-foot-tall (6.1 m) Corinthian columns made of Ortonville granite. The original second-floor entrance is encircled by a two-story-tall arch of stained glass. The building is topped by a dome with four clocks facing each of north, south, east and west. On top of the dome is a copper statue of Justice.[2]

The courthouse originally stood alone on the block; later on an addition was built at the southwest corner for more offices and a jail was built at the southeast corner.[2]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Edith M. French (June 3, 1976). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Brown County Courthouse" (PDF). National Park Service.[permanent dead link]
  3. ^ a b c Daly, Geo B. (March 18, 1904). "Courthouse Dedication". The Aberdeen Democrat.
  4. ^ a b Early History of Brown County, South Dakota. Western Printing Company. 1965. pp. 11–12.
  5. ^ a b "New County Building in South Dakota". The Minneapolis Journal. February 6, 1904.
  6. ^ a b Hayes, Tom; Wiese, Mike (2003). Aberdeen in Vintage Postcards. Arcadia Publishing. p. 98. ISBN 978-0-7385-2308-8.
  7. ^ "Big Contract Held Up: May Cause Delay at Aberdeen". The Minneapolis Journal. April 1, 1902.
  8. ^ Jeff Dean; David Donath (December 22, 1978). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Lafayette County Courthouse" (PDF). National Park Service.[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ "Court House, Aberdeen S.D." Improvement Bulletin. 25 (11). Chapin Publishing Company. February 8, 1902.
  10. ^ "Complete Cost: Brown County's Courthouse has Cost a Snug Sum". The Aberdeen Democrat. April 21, 1905.
  11. ^ "National Guard Association". The Minneapolis Journal. February 24, 1904. The date decided upon for the formal dedication of the new Brown county courthouse is March 15...
  12. ^ "Tearing Down a Landmark: The Old Brown County Court House is Being Demolished". The Kimball Graphic. June 17, 1905.
  13. ^ Waltman, Scott (June 25, 2014). "Brown County Courthouse window project progresses". The American News. Archived from the original on February 2, 2018. Retrieved February 2, 2018.

External links[edit]

Media related to Brown County Courthouse (South Dakota) at Wikimedia Commons

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