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 Allen County, Indiana, United States, and its county seat. 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 at the 2020 census ...

, 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 in Paris, particularly from the 1830s to the end of the 19th century. It drew upon the principles of French neoclassicism, but also incorporated Renaissance and ...

. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1976 and was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a National Register of Historic Places property types, building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the Federal government of the United States, United States government f ...

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). Present at its dedication were Mayor

Henry C. Berghoff Henry Carl Berghoff (January 6, 1856 – June 28, 1925) was an American politician, lawyer, and businessman who co-founded the The Berghoff (restaurant), Herman Berghoff Brewing Company in 1887 and served as the 19th List of mayors of Fort Wayn ...

and Governor Winfield T. Durbin. President

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

was scheduled to attend, however, he ultimately was not present. On September 23, 2002, the building was re-dedicated on its

centennial A centennial, or centenary in British English, is a 100th anniversary or otherwise relates to a century. Notable events Notable centennial events at a national or world-level include: * Centennial Exhibition, 1876, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. ...

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 language, 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 t ...

covering ,

bas-relief Relief is a sculptural method in which the sculpted pieces remain attached to a solid background of the same material. The term ''relief'' is from the Latin verb , 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 list of weather instruments, instrument used for showing the wind direction, direction of the wind. It is typically used as an architectural ornament to the highest point of a building. The word ' ...

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 U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...

granite Granite ( ) is a coarse-grained (phanerite, phaneritic) intrusive rock, 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 coo ...

with

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

marble Marble is a metamorphic rock consisting of carbonate minerals (most commonly calcite (CaCO3) or Dolomite (mineral), dolomite (CaMg(CO3)2) that have recrystallized under the influence of heat and pressure. It has a crystalline texture, and is ty ...

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 (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

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 Government of Fort Wayne, Indiana Clock towers in Indiana 1902 establishments in Indiana Limestone churches in the United States Beaux-Arts architecture in Indiana Granite buildings

History

Architectural details

See also

Notes

References

External links