courthouse Archives - Lost In Michigan

Eaton County Courthouse

Posted on July 4, 2019 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in courthouses, Michigan Historical Markers .

The Eaton County Courthouse Square is a rare Michigan example of an intact nineteenth-century government complex. The showplace of the square, the stately Renaissance Revival courthouse built in 1883-85, was designed by D.W. Gibbs & Company of Toledo, Ohio. The interior features several marbleized slate fireplaces, stained glass and native butternut trim. A cast zinc statue of Justice crowns the building and towers above the city. On July 4, 1894, fire destroyed much of the courthouse. The structure was rebuilt almost exactly to the original plans. The 1873 Second Empire sheriff’s residence, built with an attached jail, is one of only a few of its age remaining in the state. The courthouse square is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

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Ingham County Courthouse – Michigan Historical Marker

Posted on September 8, 2016 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in courthouses, Michigan Historical Markers .

Named for Samuel Ingham, Secretary of the Treasury under Andrew Jackson, Ingham County was organized in 1838. In 1840 Mason became the county seat. The town’s wide public square had been designed as the county’s political and business center. The first county offices were on the sides of the square until 1858, when a courthouse was built at this location. The present building, completed in 1904, was described as a “temple of justice.” Governor Fred Warner, speaking at the dedication, called it “a meeting place for farmers, mechanics, business and professional men.” The courthouse has been the center of Ingham County’s activities throughout the twentieth century. In 1971 the building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places.

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A Northern Michigan Courthouse Controversy

Posted on February 10, 2015 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in courthouses, Michigan Historical Markers .

This old courthouse stands in the middle of Bellaire, the historical marker in front of it tells a little bit of its history and reads:

The first pioneers of Antrim County settled along Grand Traverse Bay near Elk Rapids in the 1850s. Later settlers moved inland, and urged that the county seat be transferred from the bay shore closer to the geographical center of the county. After a close election in 1879, Keno, later named Bellaire, became the new county seat. Thus began a bitter controversy which was appealed to the state Supreme Court and lasted for twenty-five years. Although the courthouse square was purchased as early as 1879 the county building was not constructed until 1904-05 after another vote. Designed by Jens C. Peterson, and built by Waterman and Price, the courthouse cost $30,000.

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Gratiot County Courthouse in Ithaca Michigan

Posted on April 22, 2014 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in small towns .

I am surprised there is not a historical marker for the courthouse but I found a description on Wikipedia.

In 1900, voters approved the construction of a stone courthouse.Plans were drawn by Jackson-based architect Claire Allen, and the cornerstone was laid in September 1900. However, work soon stopped as the contractor demanded more money, and lawsuits were initiated by the county and by the contractor’s bondsmen. The issue was soon resolved, and construction resumed, this time by A. W. Mohnke of Grand Rapids. The final cost of construction was $75,000. A clock was added to the clock tower in 1905.

Tuscola County Courthouse – Michigan Historical Marker

Posted on April 3, 2014 by Mike Sonnenberg Posted in Michigan Historical Markers .

Peter DeWitt Bush (1818-1913), the second permanent resident of the village of Caro, donated the site for the village courthouse square in 1866. Then he, along with two other pioneer settlers, moved an old frame church to the site to serve as the county’s first courthouse. In 1873 the county replaced the former church with a brick courthouse that served the community’s needs until 1932, when the present Art Deco style structure was completed. Designed by Detroit architect William H. Kuni and built by Cecil M. Kelly, a Caro native, the courthouse is faced with Indiana limestone. Situated on the same site as the old brick courthouse, this $180,000 structure was completely paid for when it was dedicated on January 24, 1933, by means of a one-mill, five-year tax levy.