Indiana County Courthouse Histories
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Marion County
Named for: General Francis Marion - Revolutionary War "Swamp Fox"
Organized: 1822
County Seat: Indianapolis
Number of Courthouses: 4
| Number | Years | Type | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1825-1870 | Coffee Mill | Plan & Builders: John E. Baker & James Paxton 45x60 2-story $13,996. Contracted 9/3/1822. Accepted 1/7/1825 |
| 2 | 1870-1877 | Frame | Temporary between substantial courthouses in the same location. |
| 3 | 1876-1962 | Castle | Isaac Hodgson 276x106 Completed July 1876. $1,422,000, $1,600,000 or $1,750,000. |
| 4 | 1962-Present | Modern | Arch: Allied Architects & Engineers - Modern City/County Building, $25.5M. Builders: Huber, Hunt, & Nichols Inc. |
The 1825 Marion County Courthouse also served as the State Capitol until the first State Capitol Building was built 1832-1835.
At the time of construction of the 1876 courthouse, many in Indianapolis thought that the artistic finishes ruined a perfectly good building. The Towers of the 1876 Courthouse were decapitated sometime before it was demolished.
Like many County seats, Indianapolis was laid out specifically as the State Capitol, it did not exist until it was designated to be the Capitol and was named by the State Legislature.