Lee County - American Courthouses

Lee County is named for Richard Henry Lee, who was an orator and statesman of the American Revolutionary War.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – Ogle County

E – DeKalb County

S – LaSalle County and Bureau County

W – Whiteside County

Created: February 27, 1839

County Seat:

Dixon 1839 – present

County Courthouse – Dixon

Location: 112 East 2nd Street / South Galena Avenue

Built: 1899 – 1901

Style: Classical Revival

Architect: Charles E Brush

Contractor: William J McAlpine

Description: The building faces north and is a three story gray stone and concrete structure. The building is located on the spacious landscaped grounds of the Courthouse Square in the center of Dixon. The base has horizontal lines and a decorative cornice runs along the roof line. The north front of the building has three stone arches on the first story and four large columns rising from the second to the top of the third story. At the roof over the entrance is a high stone balustrade with ornamental decorations. In the center is a large dome with green colored roof. In the interior, wide marble stairs ascend from the entrance lobby. There are stained glass windows and wood trim. The former courtroom is located along the north side of the third story. The large courtroom is now the County Board Meeting Room. There was another smaller courtroom. The building now houses the County Administration.

County Services Building – Dixon

Location: 309 South Galena Avenue / West 3rd Street

Built: 1982 – 1983

Style: Modern

Architect: Orput Associates Inc.

Contractor: Prescott Construction Company

Description: The building faces southwest and is a four story red colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located in the center of Dixon to the southwest of the Old Courthouse. The building descends a slope on the south side with the entrance located on the south side of the first story. The roof line is flat. In the interior the hallways run north-south. There are four County Circuit Court courtrooms located on the fourth story. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 15th Judicial Circuit. The building was named as the County Courts Building and then as the County Judicial & Public Health Building. An addition was constructed in 2004 to 2005 and named as the County Services Building. The architect was Green Associates Inc. of Deerfield and the contractor was Russell Construction of St Louis, Missouri. The engineer was KMW Associates of Roxbury, Massachusetts.

See: The 15th Judicial Circuit includes Carroll County, Jo Daviess County, Ogle County and Stephenson County.

History: The county was created in 1839 and Dixon was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was a brick structure built in 1840 to 1841 by Samuel M Bowman on the northeast corner of East Third Street and Ottawa Avenue at a cost of $7,610. An addition was constructed in 1876 and the building was demolished in 1900. The second and present courthouse was constructed in 1899 to 1901 at a cost of $103,395. The county Courts Building was constructed in 1982 to 1983. An addition was constructed in 2004 to 2005.