Madison County Courthouse - Fredericktown, Missouri - Victorian Style Architecture on Waymarking.com

Constructed in 1900. the Madison County Courthouse is located at 1 Courthouse Square in downtown Fredericktown, Missouri. The rectangular brick and granite building consists of two stories plus an attic and full basement. Measuring approximately 66 feet by 76 feet, the hipped roof building with tower side gables rests on a foundation of cut, rock-faced pink granite. A square, five-story tower with a steep pyramidal roof and finial rises from the south facade where one of the building's two recessed entrances is located. Architect Theodore Carl Link, who earlier designed St. Louis' Union Station in a modified Romanesque style, designed the Madison County Courthouse in an eclectic design primarily of Romanesque, Georgian and probably Italianate affinities. Romanesque is exemplified by numerous round-arched door and window openings, the tower with its buttress-like projections containing stairways, and by the rough texture of the granite. On each side below the tower's bracketed cornice is an arched window which opens onto a balconet. The tower is dockless, but below three of the balconies are brick infilled, round openings for clocks which were never installed. In 1989-93, the exterior and much of the interior were restored to their approximate original appearance. A preponderance of historic material is intact throughout. The Madison County Courthouse retains a majority of its historic features and effectively conveys its historic significance. Within the boundaries of the nominated property are five minor objects which are typical of a courthouse setting, but are not associated with the significance of the courthouse.