Atchison County Courthouse

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

This massive Richardsonian Romanesque stone building was constructed from 1896 to 1897 to replace the previous Atchison County Courthouse which had been constructed in 1859. The corners sport towers with the highest tower in the northeast corner at over six stories tall with a clock on four sides. Most of the building is three stories tall above a basement. George P. Washburn designed the building, with a main entrance on the east beneath an archway. The building still functions as the county courthouse; it shares its lot with law enforcement offices housed in a modern building. Just a few feet from the northeast corner of the courthouse is a boulder with a plaque to commemorate a speech made by Abraham Lincoln on this site on December 2nd, 1859.

Images

North and east sides of Atchison County Courthouse in 2010 photograph (KSHS)

Photo of Atchison County Courthouse from 1916 book on county history (Ingalls)

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

In the November 1888 elections, Atchison County voters approved spending up to $100,000 on a new county courthouse to replace the inadequate 1859 building. For years, the county tried to obtain a donation of land in Atchison's commercial district but to no avail. Finally, they decided to rebuild on the same spot of the 1859 courthouse. The contract to build the new Atchison County Courthouse was awarded in May of 1896. The architect, George P. Washburn, designed a number of other public buildings including the Ottawa Courthouse. County commissioners are said to have admired the Ottawa Courthouse building while visiting nearby cities for ideas in early 1896. Temporary space was arranged for county courthouse activities and the old courthouse was demolished in 1896.

The courthouse was built of grey, Bedford. Indiana stone walls on a stone foundation by the firm Latimer and Bennings at a cost of over $60,000.; the local firm won out over 14 other bids. A.D. Clark was superintendent of construction and stonecutting was overseen by A. Semple. The engraved granite cornerstone was late in arriving in town, so the other sides of the building were constructed up to the first floor windows except for the stonework on the east side. Furniture ordered from the At Metal Company of St. Louis cost an additional $11,000. The project's plumbing and heating contractor was James Cotter of Kansas City, The top of the clock tower at the building's northeast corner is around 112 feet above ground level. The clock was installed twelve feet higher than in the original architectural plans so it would be visible from the city's downtown commercial area. The E. Howard Watch & Clock Company of Boston charged $850 for the job. The clock was nonfunctional and had been so for years in 1974 when the building was examined for completion of the National Register nomination.

The Atchison County District Court is housed in the building, as is the County Clerk, County Appraiser, County (legal) Counselor, Treasurer, and Register of Deeds (with county records beginning in 1855).

To be compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the original wooden doors in the east and west entryways were replaced a few years ago with aluminum replica doors that swing outward to open.

Sources

Anonymous. "Kansas Items of Interest." The Globe-Republican (Dodge City, KS) May 21st 1896, 2-2.

Atchison County. Departments, Atchison County, Kansas. Accessed July 15th 2020. http://www.atchisoncountyks.org/259/Departments.

Ingalls, Sheffield . History of Atchison County, Kansas. Lawrence, KS. Standard Publishing Company, 1916.

Kansas Historical Society. 005-0260-00010, Atchison County Courthouse, 425 N 5th St, Kansas Historic Resources Inventory. Accessed July 9th 2020. https://khri.kansasgis.org/index.cfm?in=005-0260-00010.

Meyers, Mary. "County locks i courthouse doors deal." Atchison Globe (Atchison, KS) December 20th 2017. atchisonglobenow.com ed, News sec.

Pankratz, Richard. NRHP Nomination of Atchison County Courthouse. National Register. Washington, DC. National Park Service, 1974.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

https://khri.kansasgis.org/index.cfm?in=005-0260-00010

Ingalls 1916:57