Tag clock tower

The Fulton County, Indiana Courthouse (1896-)

Ted Shideler 5 Comments
Read time: 6 min.

“Good, better, best. Never let it rest! Until the good is the better and the better is the best!” That cheerful motto was painted on the wall of the gym at Yorktown Elementary, but it never helped me conquer the president’s physical fitness tests for pull-ups. Two decades later, though, it became central to my understanding of three Indiana courthouses designed by A.W. and E.A. Rush. 

Continue reading “The Fulton County, Indiana Courthouse (1896-)” →

The Gibson County, Indiana Courthouse (1884-)

Ted Shideler Leave a comment
Read time: 6 min.

The Gibson County Courthouse in Princeton, Indiana, is the centerpiece of a quintessential small-town square. Folks at Department 56 -the ceramic Christmas village company- agreed, and modeled their 1989 “Original Snow Village Courthouse” after it1. The courthouse in Princeton may have reigned supreme on mantels and pie safes across middle America for thirty-five years, but the life-size building has been an Indiana landmark for a hundred and forty.

Continue reading “The Gibson County, Indiana Courthouse (1884-)” →

The Decatur County, Indiana Courthouse (1860-)

Ted Shideler 2 Comments
Read time: 5 min.

Erected in 1860, the Decatur County Courthouse is a remarkable relic of pre-Civil War architecture. It stands proudly as one of the few that old still serving Hoosier governments! Of course, what truly sets the courthouse apart is the peculiar sight that greets its visitors- a tree growing out of its clock tower.

Continue reading “The Decatur County, Indiana Courthouse (1860-)” →

The Hancock County, Indiana Courthouse (1897-)

Ted Shideler Leave a comment
Read time: 5 min.

The works of beloved poet James Whitcomb Riley -the folksy Hoosier who wrote “Little Orphan Annie,” “The Raggedy Man,” and “When the Frost is on the Punkin”- are considered by many to be timeless classics. As Greenfield’s favorite son, a statue of Riley stands ready to give his next reading in front of the monumental Hancock County Courthouse.

Continue reading “The Hancock County, Indiana Courthouse (1897-)” →

The Williams County, Ohio Courthouse (1891-)

Ted Shideler Leave a comment
Read time: 5 min.

Many communities built landmark courthouses in response to newfound economic status. Money -or the prospect of it- burned a hole in their pockets! Occasionally, cities experienced the opposite when businesses rose to meet the status of their existing courthouse. Bryan, Ohio, was once such community. In Williams County, the area’s industry grew up under the watchful eye of its amazing courthouse.

Continue reading “The Williams County, Ohio Courthouse (1891-)” →

The Clinton County, Indiana Courthouse (1884-)

Ted Shideler Leave a comment
Read time: 5 min.

I work on the southeastern side of Anderson, Indiana. My commute takes me straight past the Madison County Government Center, built in 1972 to replace a landmark courthouse in the heart of downtown. It’s a striking structure, but my thoughts always turn to Clinton County as I pass. That’s because the old building’s twin still holds court in Frankfort.

Continue reading “The Clinton County, Indiana Courthouse (1884-)” →

The Pickaway County, Ohio Courthouse (1847/1889-)

Ted Shideler 3 Comments
Read time: 5 min.

Circleville, Ohio, is laid out in blocks. You wouldn’t guess it by looking at a map today, but the town got its name from an abandoned Lenape earthwork -an Indian mound- that once measured 1,100 feet in diameter1. Circleville was founded on top of it after Pickaway County was established in 1810. The town’s original layout radiated outward from the center of the mound2.

Continue reading “The Pickaway County, Ohio Courthouse (1847/1889-)” →

The Bartholomew County, Indiana Courthouse (1874-)

Ted Shideler Leave a comment
Read time: 5 min.

Columbus is home to a superb collection of remarkable architecture- it almost has to be to live up to its nickname, “the Athens of the Prairie!” Standout architects like I.M. Pei, Elder and Eero Saarinen, Kevin Roche, and Harry Weese all contributed to the city’s inventive skyline, but Isaac Hodgson got there first: His Bartholomew County Courthouse was hailed as the “finest in the West1” when it was completed in 1874.

Continue reading “The Bartholomew County, Indiana Courthouse (1874-)” →