Gentry County - American Courthouses

Gentry County is named for Richard Gentry, who was from Boone County in Missouri and who was a soldier in the Seminole War of 1837.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – Worth County

E – Harrison County and Daviess County

S – DeKalb County

W – Andrew County and Nodaway County

Created: February 14, 1841

County Seat:

Albany 1845 – present

County Courthouse – Albany

Location: 200 West Clay Street / South Smith Street

Built: 1884 – 1885

Style: Second Empire and Late Victorian

Architect: Edmund J Eckel of Eckel and Mann

Contractor: Rufus K Allen of St. Joseph

Description: The building faces south and is a three story red colored brick and stone structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Albany. The exterior of the building is faced with St Joseph pressed brick and the decorative trim is sandstone from Porkville, Missouri. The building has a large square tower with large arch at the first story entrance and rising to a clock with peaked roof above. There is a mansard roof with dormers with bracketed eaves and decorative arched drip molding. The east and west wings project from the main building. There are dormers on the third story. In the interior, the ceiling in the central hall is still fourteen feet above the floor and is covered with pressed tin. The corridors are floored with marble parquet. The two main stairways to the second floor are wood. There is a skylight above the stairs in the south portions of the building. The large County Circuit Court courtroom is located along the south side of the second story. . There is a small courtroom on the east side of the first story. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 4th Judicial Circuit.

See: National Register of Historic Places – Gentry County Courthouse

See: The 4th Judicial Circuit includes Atchison County, Holt County, Nodaway County and Worth County.

History: The county was created in 1841 and Athens was selected as the county seat in 1845 and changed name to Albany in 1857. The first courthouse was a two story log structure built under the supervision of Isaac Cameron in 1845. The second courthouse was a two story brick temple-like structure built by George H Mosley[j1] in 1853 to 1855 at a cost of #6,000. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1884 to 1885 at a cost of $29,100.