Century courthouse

“Thus, after many years of inadequate courthouses and the many disadvantages of them, Jay County has at last a courthouse which will meet the growing needs of her people for generations to come …”

Those words stand out from an article that spanned the entire front page and parts of two others in The Commercial Review on Jan. 20, 1919. They featured a tour of the new Jay County Courthouse in preparations for four days worth of ceremonies, including the dedication of the new building, that would be held later in the week.

Many parts of the courthouse remain today exactly as they were then. The auditorium at the southwest corner with a private entrance to the stage (that space is now the coroner’s office), the superintendent’s office near the east entrance and the courtroom at the north end of the third floor. The description of the commissioners’ room, on the west side of the second floor, used in the newspaper 100 years ago would be just as fitting today:

“… in the south is a desk and other equipment set off by a railing. To the north of this are a number of long seats for accommodating bidders and others who may be interested in the work of this department.”

Other offices that remain in the same space as they were a century ago include those for the clerk, treasurer, auditor and recorder.

But, others have changed. 

Areas that were reserved for the G.A.R. (Grand Army of the Republic) and D.A.R. (Daughters of the American Revolution) are no longer housed in the courthouse, nor is there a museum containing relics from the General Shanks estate. The prosecutor’s office has moved from the third floor to the first.

The county health office that was on the second floor has moved to a building on Arch Street. And the sheriff’s office, and a jail cell, no longer occupy the south end of the third floor.

Positions such as those held by A.L. Silvers, who was in charge of the coal-fueled boilers, and Hugh Dugan, the superintendent of lighting, are obsolete.

The description of one of the courthouse’s features — the women’s restroom, which included a table and “numerous wicker rockers” — offers insight to the era during which the building was dedicated, a year before the 19th amendment would grant suffrage.

“If there is any one thing which will help attract women from far and near it is a modern restroom, for women do not like to patronize a city or town where they have no restroom available, but must ‘hang out’ at a store or wander the streets or sit in the rig while their men are discussing politics, the crops, the weather and hundreds of other vital subjects which they so frequently talk about,” the newspaper said.

The courthouse was constructed out of Bedford stone from Bedford, Indiana, dubbed as “second in durability and beauty only to granite.” Inside was a framework of brick and steel that made the building “as fire-proof as any structure can be made at the present time,” the newspaper said. The stone approaches to each of the four doors were also made of Bedford stone.

The elevated lawn around the structure was handled by Portland firm Iliff & Swhier, which hauled dirt from south of Water Street to create the 3.5-foot rise. It was done to give the building an air of “set-apartness” in addition to protecting it from flooding.

Much of the furniture in the new building was made from oak. The bronze railings, which were topped by mahogany, along the marble staircases were cast by Art Metal Company of Jamestown, New York. Each room had a Western Union clock, and the offices were labeled with 22-carat gold leaf lettering by artist Ward Stone. 

The new building featured a skylight in the center along with four paintings on each side:

West — A representation of the first pioneers — John Brooks, his wife Mary and daughter Nancy, and John Gain — arriving in the county in 1823.

East — The first log cabin ever built in Jay County with Mrs. Peter Studebaker at the door holding a baby in her arms while chatting with Native Americans.

North — A crowd gathered to honor Jay County men who were leaving to fight the Civil War.

South — The Battle of Shiloh from the Civil War.

The building, which cost $350,497.32, or about $5.1 million in today’s dollars, was celebrated over four days of ceremonies with Lawyers Day on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 1919; Victory Day on Thursday, Jan. 23; Dedication Day on Friday, Jan. 24; and Children’s Day on Saturday, Jan. 25. The facility was open from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m and 8 to 10 p.m. each day for visitors, and ushers were on hand to point out areas of interest.

Dedication Day featured concerts, including a performance by Fischer’s Orchestra, a 10-piece group from Kalamazoo, Michigan. Arthur Brady, president of Union Traction Company of Indiana, gave the dedicatory address.

The construction process took longer than expected after the cornerstone was laid on Oct. 28, 1916, with Indiana Gov. Samuel M. Ralston on hand as the main speaker. That was in large part because of the U.S. involvement in World War I.

Designed by architecture firm McLaughlin and Hulsken of Lima, Ohio, and with Dawson Construction as the lead contractor, it became the fourth courthouse in the county’s history. It followed the original, which was constructed in 1837 by Robert Huey and was used for about two years before a second one was commissioned. That building would last for nearly two decades before being condemned, after which offices and courts were held in other buildings for about 10 years.

In 1868, county commissioners contracted with George Beals to construct the third courthouse for about $7,500. It was used until being razed in 1915 to make way for the construction of the current building, with county officials moving to the former Merchants Hotel building in the interim.

Based on accounts of the day, county officials and the community as a whole were more than pleased with their new structure when it went into use in early 1919.

“Jay County citizens are proud of their new courthouse, and well they may be, for, according to state inspectors and other experts, as well as thousands of other people who have seen it, it is second to none other in Indiana or any other state, for that matter, and equaled by but very few,” said The Commercial Review. “Nor is pride in the magnificent new structure confined alone to residents of Jay County. Hundreds from adjoining counties, from other parts of the state, and some from many other states, have examined the building and, with one accord, they all pronounced it magnificent.”