Clinton County Courthouse (Iowa)
Encyclopedia
Clinton County Courthouse is a historic courthouse
in Clinton
, Iowa
. It was built in 1897 and added to the National Register of Historic Places
on July 2, 1981 as a part of the County Courthouses in Iowa Thematic Resource. It is the fourth courthouse that has been used by the county.
became the first county seat around 1840. Hotels and houses were used for county business instead of a dediated courthouse. In 1841 a frame building was donated in the town of Vanderburg, present day DeWitt
, for court purposes. As the size of the county government increased the Exchange Hotel was used for more space. A second courthouse was built in 1854 for $6,000 and measured 40 by 50 feet. The county seat moved to the city of Clinton in 1869. A courthouse was built there, which measured 44 by 52 feet.
The present courthouse was completed in 1897 for a cost of $168,000. It was designed by M.S. Mansfield in the Romanesque Revival style. He beat out eight other entrants in a competition for the right to build the new courthouse. It was constructed of red sandstone
and granite
. The large central tower is constructed of copper
.
Courthouse
A courthouse is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In most other English speaking countries, buildings which house courts of law are simply...
in Clinton
Clinton, Iowa
Clinton is a city in and the county seat of Clinton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 26231as of 2010. Clinton, along with DeWitt, Iowa , was named in honor of the seventh governor of New York, DeWitt Clinton. Clinton is the principal city of the Clinton Micropolitan Statistical...
, Iowa
Iowa
Iowa is a state located in the Midwestern United States, an area often referred to as the "American Heartland". It derives its name from the Ioway people, one of the many American Indian tribes that occupied the state at the time of European exploration. Iowa was a part of the French colony of New...
. It was built in 1897 and added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on July 2, 1981 as a part of the County Courthouses in Iowa Thematic Resource. It is the fourth courthouse that has been used by the county.
History
The town of CamancheCamanche, Iowa
Camanche is a city in Clinton County, Iowa, United States on the Mississippi River. The population was 4,215 at the 2000 census.-History:Camanche was founded by Dr. George Peck in the late 1830s, who is buried in the Rosehill Cemetery in Camanche....
became the first county seat around 1840. Hotels and houses were used for county business instead of a dediated courthouse. In 1841 a frame building was donated in the town of Vanderburg, present day DeWitt
DeWitt, Iowa
DeWitt is a city in Clinton County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,049 at the 2000 census. DeWitt was named after DeWitt Clinton , an early American politician who served as United States Senator and 7th Governor of New York.-Geography:...
, for court purposes. As the size of the county government increased the Exchange Hotel was used for more space. A second courthouse was built in 1854 for $6,000 and measured 40 by 50 feet. The county seat moved to the city of Clinton in 1869. A courthouse was built there, which measured 44 by 52 feet.
The present courthouse was completed in 1897 for a cost of $168,000. It was designed by M.S. Mansfield in the Romanesque Revival style. He beat out eight other entrants in a competition for the right to build the new courthouse. It was constructed of red sandstone
Sandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
and granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
. The large central tower is constructed of copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
.