Cherokee County - American Courthouses

Cherokee County is named for the Cherokee Native American tribe.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – O’Brien County

E – Buena Vista County

S – Ida County and Woodbury County

W – Plymouth County

Created: January 15, 1851

County Seat:

Cherokee 1851 – present

County Courthouse – Cherokee

Location: 520 West Main Street / North 6th Street

Built: 1965 – 1966

Style: Modern

Architect: Dougher Frevert & Ramsey

Contractor: Hagan Company

Description: The building faces southwest and is a two story buff colored brick, concrete and glass structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds on the side of a slope in the center of Cherokee. The main entrance is located on the second story at the southwest corner. The roof line overhangs the main building with horizontal dividers and recessed walls. The roof line is flat. In the interior, the hallways run east-west and north south from the southwest entrance and are lined with vertical wood strips. The County Magistrate Court courtroom is located on the south side of the first story. The County District Court courtroom is located on the north side of the center of the building. The building houses the County District Court of the 3A Judicial District.

See: The 3A Judicial District includes Buena Vista County, Clay County, Dickinson County, Emmet County, Kossuth County, Lyon County, O’Brien County. Osceola County and Palo Alto County.

History: The county was created in 1851 and Old Cherokee was selected as the county seat in 1861 after the county was organized in 1857. The first courthouse was native lumber structure built in 1863 to 1864 at a cost of $1,900. In 1871 the county seat was moved to Cherokee and the courthouse was moved to the new townsite. The second courthouse was a brick and granite structure designed by Zoll & Kramer and constructed by Seeley Son & Company in 1891 to 1892 at a cost of $50,000. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1965 to 1966 at a cost of $475,000.