Franklin County - American Courthouses

Franklin County is named for Franklin D Richards, who was an early Later Day Saints Church apostle.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – Bannock County and Caribou County

E – Bear Lake County

S – Cache County, Utah

W – Oneida County

Created: January 20, 1913

County Seat:

Preston 1913 – present

County Courthouse – Preston

Location: 39 West Oneida Street / State Street

Built: 1936 – 1939

Style: Art Deco

Architect: Hyrun C Pope

Contractor: O E Millard of Logan, Utah and Isakson & Morrin of Ogden, Utah

Description: The building faces north and is a three story white colored veneer of paint and sand and concrete structure. The rectangular shaped building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Preston. The building has a raised basement. The north front has eleven bays with windows between. Windows on the west and east sides are set behind concrete grillwork. The roof line is flat. In the interior, the building has a lateral hallway and a curved double staircase leading up to the second story. The walls are plaster sectioned with strips of wood molding. The ceilings are plaster with inset coving. The woodwork is oak finished with a pale varnish. There is a County Commissioner’s Meeting Room and a County Magistrate Court courtroom. The large County District Court courtroom is located on the south side of the second story in the new addition. The building houses the County District Court and County Magistrate Court of the 6th Judicial District. The building was constructed as a Public Works Administration project. W F Thomas supervised the construction and the inspector was Albion Wicklund. In 2022 to 2024 an addition was constructed on the south side. The architect and contractor was Randall Henrie of Preston.

See: National Register of Historic Places – Franklin County Courthouse

See: The 6th Judicial District includes Bannock County, Bear Lake County, Caribou County, Oneida County and Power County.

History: The county was created in 1913 and Preston was selected as the county seat. The county rented space in the Larson Block which served as the first courthouse and then in the Greaves Building which was enlarged to serve as the second courthouse. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1938 to 1939 at a cost of $135,000.