The Allen County Courthouse is located at the block surrounded by Clinton/Calhoun/Main/Berry Streets in downtown

Fort Wayne, Indiana Fort Wayne is a city in and the county seat of Allen County, Indiana, United States. Located in northeastern Indiana, the city is west of the Ohio border and south of the Michigan border. The city's population was 263,886 as of the 2020 Censu ...

, the county seat of Allen County. Built between 1897 and 1902, it is a nationally significant example of

Beaux-Arts architecture Beaux-Arts architecture ( , ) was the academic architectural style taught at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris, particularly from the 1830s to the end of the 19th century. It drew upon the principles of French neoclassicism, but also incorp ...

. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1976 and was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

on July 31, 2003.

History

Designed by Brentwood S. Tolan, construction began in 1897, the cornerstone was laid November 17, 1897. The building was dedicated September 23, 1902, with a final cost of $817,553.59 ($250 million today). On September 23, 2002, the building was re-dedicated on its

centennial {{other uses, Centennial (disambiguation), Centenary (disambiguation) A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century, a period of 100 years. Notable events Notable centennial events at ...

after a seven-year restoration effort, which cost $8.6 million.(2002-09-23). Restoration does justice—The finished work awes and amazes visitors. ''The News-Sentinel''. Retrieved on 2009-07-25.

Architectural details

The

-style structure includes such features as four murals by Charles Holloway, twenty-eight different kinds of

scagliola Scagliola (from the Italian ''scaglia'', meaning "chips") is a type of fine plaster used in architecture and sculpture. The same term identifies the technique for producing columns, sculptures, and other architectural elements that resemble inla ...

covering ,

bas-relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces are bonded to a solid background of the same material. The term '' relief'' is from the Latin verb ''relevo'', to raise. To create a sculpture in relief is to give the impression that th ...

s and art glass. Each of the five court rooms has its own color scheme. Atop the building is a -high copper-clad domed rotunda, itself topped by a statue

wind vane A wind vane, weather vane, or weathercock is an instrument used for showing the direction of the wind. It is typically used as an architectural ornament to the highest point of a building. The word ''vane'' comes from the Old English word , m ...

of Lady Liberty. The larger than life statue has feet that would wear a woman's

shoe size A shoe size is an indication of the fitting size of a shoe for a person. There are a number of different shoe-size systems used worldwide. While all shoe sizes use a number to indicate the length of the shoe, they differ in exactly what they me ...

of 28. The building materials include Bedford Limestone and

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

with

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite. Marble is typically not foliated (layered), although there are exceptions. In geology, the term ''marble'' refers to metamorphose ...

details. A tunnel was constructed to connect the Courthouse with the City-County Building located across the street. The Courthouse also houses a fallout shelter underground. The skylights originally built into the building were covered during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

and replaced with artificial light. The 2001 National Historic Landmark Nomination says in its opening paragraph: "An elaborate combination of Greek, Roman, and Renaissance influences, the massive courthouse reflects the exuberant ambition of late nineteenth century America." and

Notes

References

* Hawfield, Michael and Michael Westfall, ''The Allen County Court House: A National Treasure Restored'. ''The Allen County Court House Preservation Trust, Guild Press, 2002.''

External links

{{Authority control County courthouses in Indiana Courthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Indiana National Historic Landmarks in Indiana National Register of Historic Places in Fort Wayne, Indiana Government buildings completed in 1902 Buildings and structures in Fort Wayne, Indiana Government of Fort Wayne, Indiana Clock towers in Indiana 1902 establishments in Indiana Stone buildings Beaux-Arts architecture in Indiana

History

Architectural details

See also

Notes

References

External links