St. Joseph County Courthouse
Posted by: Groundspeak Premium Member S5280ft
N 41° 55.412 W 085° 31.662
16T E 622079 N 4642334
Not easy to miss on the south side of main street between Burg Wahl Klinger Lane/Covered Bridge Road and Dean Street. There's got to be a story about those street names. Parking is available.
Waymark Code: WM1MBB
Location: Michigan, United States
Date Posted: 05/31/2007
Published By:Groundspeak Regular Member "Paws"itraction
Views: 99

Michigan Territorial Governor George B. Porter proclaimed Centreville the St. Joseph County seat on November 22, 1831. On November 7, 1831, Robert Clark, Jr., Electra W. Dean, Charles Noble and Daniel B. Miller donated the public square and fifty-six additional lots to the county. The first courthouse, a Greek Revival structure with four large columns on its east portico, was built in the center of the square in 1842 by John Bryan. That building was removed in 1899, to make way for the present red brick and sandstone courthouse, whose construction began on September 8 of that year. Grand Rapids architect Sidney J. Osgood designed the Romanesque Revival structure, and Coldwater contractors Crookshank and Somers built it at a cost of $33,000.

(SIDE TWO) The present St. Joseph County courthouse was dedicated on August 1, 1900. Its Romanesque Revival design creates a commodious, well-lighted, solid building that echoes the justice and stability it represents. Marble floors, wide spacious stairs, ornately carved woodwork, frosted glass doors and three wall murals still grace the little-altered interior. The clock, whose faces are five and one-half feet in diameter, was purchased by the village of Centreville for $850 and placed in the seventy-five-foot tower prior to the completion of the courthouse. When the building became too small to accommodate all of the government offices, a new courts building was constructed on the south side of the public square. The courthouse, however, remains the seat of government.
Historical Date: 08/01/1900

Historical Name: George B. Porter, Robert Clark, Jr., Electra W. Dean, Charles Noble and Daniel B. Miller, John Bryan, Sidney J. Osgood

Parking nearby?: yes

D/T ratings:

website: [Web Link]

Registered Site #: Local Site #1150

Description: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Take a photo of your GPS at the marker. We'd prefer a photo of you with your GPS, but we realize that sometimes that's just not possible or preferable. Also include a bit about your visit to the marker.

NEW: Instructions for logging Missing Marker Visits.

If the Marker is missing, but still listed here, you must provide a photo of you at the actual item historically honored. (This should be the waymark's "default" image). Indicate in your log that you took your photo at the Historical Location instead of the marker, because the marker was missing. Please also still include a bit about your visit to the site.

Search for...
Geocaching.com Google Map
Google Maps
MapQuest
Bing Maps
Nearest Waymarks
Nearest Michigan Historical Markers
Nearest Geocaches
Create a scavenger hunt using this waymark as the center point
Recent Visits/Logs:
Date Logged Log User Rating  
theHostas visited St. Joseph County Courthouse 06/27/2018 theHostas visited it
just for the fun visited St. Joseph County Courthouse 10/18/2016 just for the fun visited it
Historic Markers visited St. Joseph County Courthouse 09/28/2014 Historic Markers visited it
princess banker visited St. Joseph County Courthouse 06/19/2012 princess banker visited it
DnRseekers visited St. Joseph County Courthouse 09/24/2011 DnRseekers visited it

View all visits/logs