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The Ringgold County Courthouse in Mount Ayr, Iowa, United States, was built in 1927. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981 as a part of the County Courthouses in Iowa Thematic Resource.[1] The courthouse is the fourth building the county has used for court functions and county administration.

History

The first Ringgold County courthouse was a log structure constructed in 1856. It was destroyed in a tornado two years later, and the logs were salvaged for use in a new house. A frame building was constructed for the second courthouse and the county paid $3,500 to have it built.[2] It was two stories and measured 60 by 20 feet (18.3 by 6.1 m).[3] The third courthouse was under construction when it was destroyed in a fire on Thanksgiving Day 1889. The new courthouse was a brick and stone building that was built for $36,455. The 2½-story structure measured 96 by 77 feet (29 by 23 m) and had a central tower that rose 102 feet (31 m).[3] That building was condemned in 1921. It was given, along with $500 to a house wrecker to be torn down. Voters approved a new courthouse in 1926. The three-story brick building measures 91 by 86 feet (28 by 26 m) and was built at a cost of $132,533.[2] It was designed by the Des Moines architectural firm of Keffer & Jones and built by the L.T. Grisman Company.

Architecture

The courthouse is considered a "budget classical" building by which the structure's Beaux-Arts and Neoclassical design elements are stripped to a minimal form.[4] The building becomes more utilitarian than imaginatively expressed. The three-story building is composed of red brick and concrete. Stone trim runs horizontally between the first and second floors and above the third floor where there is also a projecting stone cornice. The building is capped with a flat roof. The significance of the courthouse is derived from its association with county government, and the political power and prestige of Mount Ayr as the county seat.[4]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ a b "Ringgold County Courthouse". Iowa Judicial Branch. Retrieved 2011-03-02.
  3. ^ a b Stanek, Edward and Jacqueline (1976). Iowa's Magnificent County Courthouses. Des Moines: Wallace-Homestead. p. 166. ISBN 0-87069-189-9.
  4. ^ a b M.H. Bowers. "Ringgold County Courthouse". National Park Service. Retrieved 2015-12-30. with photo from 1979
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ringgold_County_Courthouse