Indiana County Courthouse Histories

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Fountain County
Named for: Major Fountain - Kentucky Indian Fighter
Organized: 1826
County Seat: Covington
Number of Courthouses: 4

Number	Years	Type	Detail
1	1827-1833	Frame	Builder: Abraham Griffith Ordered March, 1827 20x26 2-story $335
2	1833-1859	Coffee Mill?	Brick ordered March, 1829 - Plan adopted November, 1830; Construction delayed by County Seat relocation battle
3	1860-1936	Castle	Arch & Supt: Isaac Hodgson - June 1856, Paid 4.5%, $54,624.05; Builder: James G. Hardy - Bid $33,500; Completed - Fall 1859; Paid $36,500; The original contractor was Lewis Toms - Bid 27,785.50 but defaulted. The brick was contracted by the commissioners in May 1856. Partially destroyed by fire January, 1860; Rebuilder: John H. Thomas - Bid $14,800. Reoccupied January 1861; Paid $18,124.05
4	1937-Present	Castle	Arch: Louis R. Johnson & Walter Scholar Art Deco $246,734; Builder: Jacobson Brothers, $199,000; Cornerstone 8/25/1936 Dedicated 7/3/1937

The 1937 Courthouse is one of 3 Art Deco Courthouses built in Indiana with WPA assistance in the 1930's. Some outstanding murals painted by artists employed by the WPA distinguish it. The other WPA Courthouses are in Howard and Shelby Counties.

Walter Scholar also designed the 1929 Bedford Courthouse in Lawrence County.

There is a Fountain County Veterans Memorial in the Southwest Corner of the 1937 courthouse. There is also a WWI Doughboy monument in Covington in front of the library.