Wyandotte County - American Courthouses

Wyandotte County is named for the Native American tribe Wyandotte who resided in the region.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – Leavenworth County and Platte County, Missouri

E – Platte County, Missouri, Clay County, Missouri and Jackson County, Missouri

S – Johnson County

W – Leavenworth County

Created: August 25, 1855

County Seat:

Kansas City 1859 – present

County Courthouse – Kansas City

Location: 700 North 7th Street / Barnett Avenue

Built: 1926 – 1927

Style: Classical Revival

Architect: Wight & Wight of Kansas City, Missouri

Contractor: Gofrey Swensen Construction Company, of Kansas City, Missouri

Description: The building faces east and is a six story gray colored limestone and concrete structure. The rectangular shaped building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Kansas City. The building is constructed of dressed Indiana limestone laid in running bond. The east front has a large porch supported by six large Doric columns rising to a wide header. The entrance is recessed. Between the four central columns are paired doors with carved limestone enframements and pedimented hoods with egg-and-dart molding. New, metal frame doors with metal grille work and transoms replace the original doors. A cornice runs along the flat roof line. In the interior, the corridors run north-south with the grand staircase at the western side of the building. Finishes consist of terrazzo and marble flooring, plaster walls and ceilings, marble wainscoting, oak doors and trim, and marble stair treads, risers and balustrades. Marble panels also clad the freestanding and wall columns. The re are eleven courtrooms located in the building. The building houses the County District Court of the 29th Judicial District. On the west side is a five story County Justice Center.

See: National Register of Historic Places – Wyandotte County Courthouse

County Justice Center – Kansas City

Location: 738 Ann Avenue / North 8th Street

Built: 1985 – 1988

Style: Modern

Architect: Schlup, Becker & Brennan

Contractor: J E Dunn Construction Company

Description: The building faces east and is a five story cream colored siding and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Kansas City on the west side of the courthouse. The buikding houses onel courtroom.

Corrections & Court Services Building – Kansas City

Location: 866 North 7th Street / Barnett Avenue

Built: 1958 – 1959

Style: Modern

Architect: Radotinsky, Meyn and Deardoff

Contractor: Unknown

Description: The building faces west and is a four story red brick, glass and concrete structure. The rectangular shaped building is located on landscaped grounds on the north side of the courthouse. The windows are horizontal. The roof line is flat. The building has two courtrooms and the adjoining Juvenile Justice Building has two courtrooms. The building was the former federal building until 1997.

History: The county was created in 1855 and Kansas City was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was the second story of the Lipman Meyer Building in Kansas City in 1859. The second courthouse was a rental premises on Minnesota Avenue in 1867. The third courthouse was a two story wood frame structure purchased in 1869 at the northeast corner of Huron Place. In 1871, the fourth courthouse was the rented Dunning’s Hall at the southeast of Fourth Street and Nebraska Avenue. The fifth courthouse was a three story Italianate structure constructed by C T Carrin 1883. The sixth and present courthouse was constructed in 1926 to 1927 at a cost of $912,020.