Kendall County Courthouse

The Kendall County Courthouse is a former courthouse in Yorkville, Kendall County, Illinois, United States. The original building was completed in 1864 but was later destroyed by fire. A replica of the Italianate structure was erected in 1887. The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.HistoryConstruction on the Kendall County Courthouse began in 1862 in Yorkville, Illinois on a bluff overlooking the Fox River. The limestone and brick building was completed in 1864 and went into service as the primary judiciary building for Kendall County. The original completed structure stood four and a half stories tall including its two-story cupola.At about 4 a.m on March 25, 1887 the courthouse was struck by fire. Yorkville, without a fire department at the time, was forced to rely upon railroad water cars from nearby Aurora to extinguish any blazes. Citizens of Yorkville rescued the sheriff, his family and two prisoners being held in the jail. Though the exact cause of the fire was never determined, it is believed to have started in a coal stove in the sheriff's residence.The railroad cars did not arrive to Yorkville in time and the building was almost completely destroyed. The fire left only the exterior walls standing. After the fire the interior of the building was redesigned and the building reconstructed. The roof was topped with a one-story domed capital. The dome was removed in 1920 because of continued problems with water leakage.