Monroe County Courthouse

Monroe County Courthouse in Bloomington, Indiana is a Beaux Arts building built in 1908. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976. It is located in the Courthouse Square Historic District and is the seat of government for Monroe County, Indiana.HistoryThe first Monroe County Courthouse was ordered built in 1818 by the county commissioners, as one of the earliest items of business for the new county. "On Tuesday, April 14, (the fifth day ), very specific directions were written for the construction of a temporary log courthouse - a double cabin to be completed by the first of August. This log courthouse was probably located somewhere in the immediate area of where the Waldron Arts building is today."The courthouse was built in August 1818 by Samuel Elliot. The cost of the structure was not to exceed $400. It was a single-story two-room cabin in the manner of a double log cabin. One room was square, and the other was by ; the two were separated by a 10ft entryway. The building was to be high to the eaves, and each room was to contain one window facing the east in order to take advantage of the sun. Villagers erected a chimney for each room after it was decided to use the structure as a school.The log cabin courthouse was located on what now would be the south side of the square, now 116 South Walnut Street. Bloomington historian Dennis E. Matthews commissioned Jim Woods, owner of Woods and Nordberg Signs, to sketch the first courthouse in 1988. The charcoal sketch was drawn from a description by Bloomington historian Robert Leffler. Later Matthews made a model of the log cabin courthouse, which can be seen at the Monroe County History Center.