The main courtroom during a 1998 renovation.

“The whole exrerior is imposing in effect of graceful outlines and harmonious proportions and the interior, as will be seen from the description we have been given, combines all the modern comforts and improvements.”

The Times-Mirror said that the final cost for the courthouse was “not much” over $100,000.

On dedication day, the courthouse was “crowded with spectators” who heard various addresses. “In the vening, a public reception was held,” they reported, “which was largely attended.”

Court was first held in the new courthouse starting with the December 1877 term when the local press reported that “there was evidently no waste of money and no robbery of the public” in constructing the new building.

Total cost was $97.434/59, with $85,000 of that amount borrowed from the Rouse Fund.

Furnishing the courthouse in 1877 cost roughly $6,000.

Additions to the courthouse were made in 1916 and 1925 and additional major renovations completed in 1942.

Pictures taken prior to 1941 of the main courtroom reveal a chadelier and four fireplaces for heat, as well as ceiling fans and an upright piano located near the entrance to the attorney’s room to the east of the bench. The jury box was located on the opposite side o the room.

The commissioners deliberated on improvements in December 1941 and discussed an architect’s proposal that included “…repairs made necessary by reason of the falling of (a) portion of the ceiling.”

It is assumed that this renovation resulted in switching the jury box to the opposite side of the room, replacing the grand shutters with draperies and the installing a modern hearting system.

The courthouse saw a significant renovation again in 1963 – but not entirely for reasons that you would think.

That renovation totaled $266,000 and was brandished more of a “modernization” than a rehabilitation.

And that modernization was undertaken at the height of the Cold War when the prospect of nuclear war was, or was at least perceived to be, a realistic possibility.

So the 1963 work provided “the necessary protection for a civil defense operations headquarter in the event of a nuclear attack or natural emergency,” according to an article in the Warren paper.

A federal official on hand for a dedication commented that “the Federal Government is deadly serous about this kind of service being incorporated in every community in this country… Civil Devense does not stick out like a sore thumb in Warren county but it is an integral part of what you are doing here.”

The project included ithe installation of an elevator, new offices “as well as smoke screens, enclosed stairwells and an emergency fireproofed stairway on the north wing of the building.”

The basement was also “remodeled to provide offices by day and protection by night.

A state official said that the work “provides essential services for a growing population” and “makes preparations for emergencies which can at any minute strike.”

The courthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

Structural damage was observed in October 1998 which led to a disturbance of asbestos, resulting the courtroom being stripped of all furnishings, carpeting and tile.

That damage, according to a 1998 Times Observer article, was caused by an August thunderstorm.

The courthouse was closed for months.

The storm “triggered a series of events that bowed the ceiling.” Restoration specialists “popped (it) back into shape with the use of a crane,” we reported at the time. “Upon rehanging the main courtroom ceiling, acoustic materials were accidentally penetrated, releasing asbestos particles into the air and onto the benches, carpeting, walls and drapery.”

Refurbishing included the ceiling, woodwork on the courtroom benches and new carpeting and drapes.

The courthouse added a courtroom when the Robert H. Jackson Courtroom was dedicated in 2005 on the courthouse’s second floor.