Ray County is named for John Ray, who was a Missouri state legislator.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Caldwell County
E – Carroll County
S – Lafayette County and Jackson County
W – Clinton County
Created: November 16, 1820
County Seat:
Bluffton 1821 – 1827
Richmond 1827 – present
County Courthouse – Richmond
Location: 100 West Main Street / North College Street
Built: 1914 – 1915
Style: Classical Revival
Architect: R Warren Roberts of Chillicothe
Contractor: L W Dumas Construction Company of Columbia
Description: The building faces west and is a three story Bedford stone and concrete structure. The rectangular shaped building is located on the landscaped grounds of the Courthouse Square in the center of Richmond. The building is 75 feet by 100 feet. The west front and all sides have four columns rising from the second story to the top of the third story with a pediment above which has a clock in the center. The first story is horizontal stone with a recessed entrances having small balconies on the second story. Around the roof line is a stone balustrade. In the interior, the four entrances lead to a spacious central lobby on the first story. The lobby has the original black and white colored tile flooring and marble wainscoting. The rectangular atrium over the lobby rises to the top of the second story. At the north entrance, stairs ascend to the upper stories. The large County Circuit Court courtroom is located on the south side of the third story. The small County Circuit Court courtroom is located on the west side of the second story. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 8th Judicial Circuit.
See: The architect, R Warren Roberts of Chillicothe also designed the courthouse in Livingston County.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Ray County Courthouse
See: The 8th Judicial Circuit includes Carroll County.
History: The county was created in 1820 and Bluffton was selected as the county seat. In 1827, the county seat was moved to Richmond. The first courthouse was a hewn log structure chinked with mulberry blacks built in 1829. The second courthouse was a temple-type structure copied after the courthouse in Lafayette County and built in 1857 to 1858 at a cost of $25,000. Plans were drafted by George A Kice and George W Dunn was superintendent of construction. The building was razed in the 1960’s. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1914 to 1915.
County Courthouse – Richmond
County Circuit Court courtroom
County Circuit Court small courtroom
Statue of Colonel Alexander Doniphan
Photos taken 2009 and 2023
Images 27*