The Frontenac County Court House in

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the northeastern end of Lake Ontario. It is at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River, the south end of the Rideau Canal. Kingston is near the Thousand Islands, ...

, Canada is the

Courthouse A courthouse or court house is a structure which houses judicial functions for a governmental entity such as a state, region, province, county, prefecture, regency, or similar governmental unit. A courthouse is home to one or more courtrooms, ...

for

Frontenac County, Ontario Frontenac County is a county and census division of the Canadian province of Ontario. It is located in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario. The city of Kingston is in the Frontenac census division, but is separated from the County of Front ...

. The Neoclassical building was designed by Edward Horsey and constructed by builders Scobell and Tossell. Alternation after 1874 fire by John Power added the dome tower. It overlooks City Park to its south, and

Lake Ontario Lake Ontario is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is bounded on the north, west, and southwest by the Canadian province of Ontario, and on the south and east by the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. The Canada–United Sta ...

beyond. The front of the structure features the

Royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom The royal coat of arms of the United Kingdom, also referred to as the royal arms, are the arms of dominion of the British monarch, currently Charles III. They are used by the Government of the United Kingdom and by other The Crown, Crown instit ...

. The building is made from limestone. The building is located north of Court Street, between Barrie Street and West Street, directly north-east from Queen's Campus. To its north is located Sydenham Public School, and to its south (south of Court Street) is a park with sports fields directly east of Queen's.

History

The courthouse opened in 1858. Its domed roof tower was added in 1874 after a fire and a three-tiered fountain was added in 1903. In 1980 it was designated a

National Historic Site of Canada National Historic Sites of Canada () are places that have been designated by the federal Minister of the Environment on the advice of the Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada (HSMBC), as being of national historic significance. Parks C ...

.www.pc.gc.ca
/ref> In October 2011, the Shafia family murders trial began to be heard at this courthouse. The largest courtroom in the courthouse was rewired to add flat-screen televisions and two soundproof booths for real-time translation by interpreters via headphones.

Interior

Pre-1963 changes the Court House was home to Court of Queen's Bench and county administrative offices from 1865-1998:

2nd floor

* Judge's room * Council Chambers * Jury Room * Court Room * Barristers room * Library * Rest room

Main

* offices of the county sheriff, county clerk * judge's office * judges chambers * Court room B, C and D * treasurer's office * public offices Since 1963 many rooms have been altered, including loss of one court room on the second floor.

References

History at waymarking.com

History at realontario.ca

Frontenac County Court House National Historic Site

External links

High resolution (1.7Gpx) exterior photo

360-degree panorama
{{NHSC 1858 establishments in Canada 1858 architecture Courthouses in Canada National Historic Sites in Ontario Buildings and structures in Kingston, Ontario Neoclassical architecture in Canada Designated heritage properties in Ontario