Indiana County Courthouse Histories
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LaPorte County
Named for: French for "the door"
Organized: 1832
County Seat: LaPorte
Number of Courthouses: 4
| Number | Years | Type | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1835-1849 | Coffee Mill | Builder: Simon Bunce 40x40 $3975 |
| 2 | 1849-1892 | Stylized | Arch: John Van Osdel. Builder: Luther Mann Jr. Cornerstone 1848. $9350 |
| 3 | 1894-Present | Castle | Arch: Brentwood Tolan 140x112 $328,000. Builder: Charles A. Moses 1/28/1892, bid $197,244, paid $247,000. Groundbreaking February 1892. Cornerstone 6/30/1892. Occupied March 1894 |
Additional Courthouse: In addition to the La Porte Courthouses there is a Superior Courthouse in Michigan City completed in 1909 and designed by Mahuran & Mahuran. Previous to construction courts were held in a rented building at Franklin & Michigan Streets.
The 1849 Courthouse was designed by John Van Osdel. Van Osdel also designed the 1855 Saint Joseph Courthouse and possibly the 1853 Porter County Courthouse. Photos exist of the 1849 Courthouse both with and without a front portico, the reason for this is unknown, but one must ask if both of the versions are actually La Porte County's. The La Porte County Historical Society believes both versions represent the La Porte Courthouse but do not know when or why the portico was added.