Livingston County Courthouse

For the first four years of Livingston County’s history, private homes served as occasional courtrooms or county offices. In 1841, the first Livingston County Courthouse was constructed. This two-story, wood-frame building, along with housing county offices, served as a school, a church, and on rare occasions, a theater. For three months in 1845, the jury room and courtroom were rented by a local merchant and used as store. When the county decided to build a new courthouse, this building was relocated and put to new uses.

In 1855, county officials determined the original courthouse was inadequate for conducting county business. So, a new courthouse was planned. The 1856 courthouse was built of stone and featured an attractive central spire. Unfortunately, many citizens disliked the new courthouse, feeling it was too large and expensive. The building was used for county business and served as city hall and headquarters for the volunteer fire department. Later, iron bars were added to some windows so one room in the building could serve as city jail. Unfortunately, on July 4, 1874, the second courthouse was destroyed by fire — believed to have been caused by mishandled fireworks — that gutted both the building and a substantial portion of the downtown business district.

The current courthouse is the county’s third courthouse. The architect, J.C. Cochrane of Chicago, also designed the Iowa State Capital. Construction began as soon as the lot was cleared of debris from the fire that destroyed the second courthouse. Work was completed in late 1875. The contracted building cost — including furniture, heating apparatus, and gas lighting — was set at $75,000 (about $13.28 million in 2024 dollars). Only $50 was allowed for cost overruns. Shortly after, the contractors were called into a court of bankruptcy; they are believed to have lost $15,000 on the job.

The Livingston County Courthouse was originally heated using wood- or coal-burning stoves in each room. Electricity and steam heat were added to the building in 1891. The clocks on the building’s center spire were installed in 1892. In 2013, the courthouse underwent a multimillion-dollar renovation that restored the courtroom to its original height and design, restored the building’s main hallway and staircase, and remodeled the offices and the basement. Numerous other components such as HVAC, plumbing, fire protection, IT infrastructure, physical security, windows, wood trim, and doors were replaced or repaired. This building is listed on the National Register of Historical Places.