Howard T. Markey National Courts Building
Encyclopedia
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 Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
, which houses the United States Court of Federal Claims
United States Court of Federal Claims
The United States Court of Federal Claims is a United States federal court that hears monetary claims against the U.S. government. The court is established pursuant to Congress's authority under Article One of the United States Constitution...
and the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
-Vacancies and pending nominations:-List of former judges:-Chief judges:Notwithstanding the foregoing, when the court was initially created, Congress had to resolve which chief judge of the predecessor courts would become the first chief judge...
. It is located at 717 Madison Place
Madison Place
Madison Place is a one-block street located in northwest Washington, D.C., across from the White House. It forms the eastern border of Lafayette Square between Pennsylvania Avenue and H Street NW. Buildings on Madison Place include the Howard T...
NW, east of Lafayette Square and north of the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
, and borders the Benjamin Ogle Tayloe House
Benjamin Ogle Tayloe House
The Benjamin Ogle Tayloe House is a Federal-style house located at 21 Madison Place NW in Washington, D.C., in the United States. The house is on the northeast corner of Madison Place NW and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, directly across the street from the White House and the Treasury Building...
at 721 Madison Place NW, the former Cosmos Club
Cosmos Club
The Cosmos Club is a private social club in Washington, D.C., founded by John Wesley Powell in 1878. In addition to Powell, original members included Clarence Edward Dutton, Henry Smith Pritchett, William Harkness, and John Shaw Billings. Among its stated goals is "The advancement of its members in...
building at 725 Madison Place NW, and the Cutts-Madison House
Cutts-Madison House
The Cutts-Madison House is an American colonial-style historic home located at 721 Madison Place NW in Washington, D.C...
at 1520 H Street NW.
Originally, the plan for the courthouse and an office building for White House staff had called for the historic houses on both sides of Lafayette Square to be razed. First Lady
First Lady of the United States
First Lady of the United States is the title of the hostess of the White House. Because this position is traditionally filled by the wife of the president of the United States, the title is most often applied to the wife of a sitting president. The current first lady is Michelle Obama.-Current:The...
Jacqueline Kennedy, a believer in historic preservation
Historic preservation
Historic preservation is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance...
, urged President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
John F. Kennedy
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald "Jack" Kennedy , often referred to by his initials JFK, was the 35th President of the United States, serving from 1961 until his assassination in 1963....
to find an alternative solution. Kennedy tapped architect John Carl Warnecke
John Carl Warnecke
John Carl Warnecke was an architect based in San Francisco, California, who designed numerous notable monuments and structures in the Modernist, Bauhaus, and other similar styles. He was an early proponent of contextual architecture. Among his more notable buildings and projects are the Hawaii...
to come up with a plan to preserve the houses. Warnecke and Jacqueline Kennedy envisioned that the courthouse and the New Executive Office Building
New Executive Office Building
The New Executive Office Building is an U.S. federal government office building in Washington, D.C., for the executive branch....
, a twin structure to be built on the other side of Lafayette Square, would form a backdrop for the historic houses. The two buildings remain distinctive in their own right.
The Building Committee included Chief Judge John Marvin Jones
John Marvin Jones
Judge John Marvin Jones was a member of the United States House of Representatives from Texas and Chief Judge of the federal Court of Claims.-Biography:...
, Commissioner Marion Tinsley Bennett
Marion Tinsley Bennett
Marion Tinsley Bennett served the United States for over 56 years in all three branches of the federal government of the United States, having been a federal judge, a member of Congress, and a colonel in the Air Force Ready Reserves.Born in Buffalo, Missouri on June 6, 1914 to Philip Allen Bennett...
, and Chief Commissioner Arnold Wilson Cowen
Arnold Wilson Cowen
Arnold Wilson Cowen , also known as Wilson Cowen, was successively a trial commissioner, a trial judge, and the chief judge of the appellate division of the United States Court of Claims...
. The building was dedicated on September 20, 1967.
The courthouse was initially built for the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals
United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals
The United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals is a former United States federal court which existed from 1909 to 1982 and had jurisdiction over certain types of civil disputes.-History:...
and the United States Court of Claims
United States Court of Claims
The Court of Claims was a federal court that heard claims against the United States government. It was established in 1855 as the Court of Claims, renamed in 1948 to the United States Court of Claims , and abolished in 1982....
, so when the two courts were abolished and merged to create the Federal Circuit in 1982, they already had a domicile in common.
In 1998, President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
signed legislation renaming the National Courts Building after Howard Thomas Markey
Howard Thomas Markey
Howard Thomas Markey was an American jurist who served as the first chief judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. He is often credited with establishing that court's renown and competence in intellectual property law...
. The re-dedication celebration was held on October 23, 1998, during a special joint session of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the Court of Federal Claims.