County of courthouse: Ripley County
Location of courthouse: Courthouse Square, Doniphan
Built: 1899
Architect: William F. Schrage of Kansas City
Architectural Style: Second Empire
Phone: (573) 996-3215
"William F. Schrage, Kansas City architect, designed the third courthouse, which was built in 1898-99.
"Judge McManus was appointed superintendent, and John M. Anderson contracted the building. The two-story courthouse, built of local brick, measured 128 by 95 feet at the base and 30 feet high. On July 30, 1898, Ripley County authorized $20,000 in bonds to pay for the courthouse and jail. By 1899 the courthouse was completed.
"Tambourine players pose on the steps of the Ripley County Courthouse. This group, directed by Mrs. Marion Hudson, performed in Ripley County early in the 20th century.
"Schrage also designed similar courthouses for Morgan, Laclede and Howard counties. Laclede's courthouse was destroyed by fire; Morgan's has lost part of its tower; and Howard's was seriously damaged by fire in the 1970s, but was repaired. The three related courthouses, which were built a few years earlier than Ripley County's, all featured a central tower.
"During the 1930s a Work Projects Administration project repaired storm and tornado damage, but until the 1970s the Ripley County courthouse remained without central heating or a regular maintenance program. Extensive remodeling began in 1976. Ripley County contributed $80,000 for the project; the remainder of the $325,000 cost came from an Economic Development Administration grant. This building, which still functions as the Ripley County courthouse, has been included in the National Register of Historic Places." ~ Extension, University of Missouri
"The Rlpley County Courthouse is central to the downtown business section
and the hub of traffic through Doniphan, Missouri. It is a two-story (plus high
basement and attic) brick structure with stone foundation located on
approximately 1-1/4 acres of ground. The architecture is a variant of the
Second Empire style. The east entrance overlooks the central business section;
the west entrance faces a main artery leading to Highway 160 and the bridge
over the Current River; the south faces shops and business lining the downtown
environs; and the north looks onto one of the town's principal arteries.
"The major architectural feature originally was a central east tower with
mansard roof, dormer windows and a lantern. Each corner pavilion of the
foursquare building had a mansard roof with dormer windows and cresting at the
roof edges. These distinctive features were damaged in a tornado in 1929. They
were repaired, but never restored and so the building lost much of its original
character.
"The four entrance porches have been modified, their broad stairways replaced
with narrower concrete stairs and the wooden balustrades replaced with native
rock balustrades (in a Work Projects Administration [WPA] project during
the 1930's)." ~ NRHP Nomination Form