Humboldt County is named for the Humboldt River, which was named for Alexander von Humboldt who was a German naturalist and explorer.
Surrounding county Courthouses:
N – Harney County, Oregon and Malheur County, Oregon
E – Elko County
S – Lander County and Pershing County
W – Washoe County
Created: November 25, 1861
County Seat:
Unionville 1861 – 1873
Winnemucca 1873 – present
County Courthouse – Winnemucca
Location: 25 West 5th Street / South Bridge Street
Built: 1920 – 1921
Style: Neo-Classical and Beaux Arts
Architect: Frederic J DeLongchamps of Reno
Contractor: Peraldo Brother / Lehman A Ferris (supervisor)
Description: The building faces northeast and is a two story buff colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Winnemucca. The northeast front has a portico with six Corinthian columns rising to a pediment at the roof line. The north and south sides of the building project slightly from the main building. A wide cornice runs below the roof line with a horizontal band running below the cornice. In the interior is a marble staircase, and a two-story atrium with Ionic columns that support a dramatic leaded-glass ceiling. The walls of the halls, rotunda and offices are finished in gray colored plasters. The floors of the halls and rotunda are marble and the baseboards are marble. The former courtroom is located on the southwest side of the second story and has walls finished in panels tinted in harmonious shades and now houses the Commissioners Chamber. The building addition houses the County District Court of the 6th Judicial District. On the southwest side, a two story addition connected by passageway was built in 1974 to 1976. The courtroom is located on the second story. The architect was Alton Dean Jensen of Winnemucca and the contractor was Corrad Construction Company. The addition is named the Public Safety Building.
See: Frederic J DeLongchamps designed courthouses located in Carson City (Ormsby County), Douglas County, Lander County, Lyon County, Perishing County and Washoe County. He also designed the California courthouse in Alpine County.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Humboldt County Courthouse.
History: The county was created in 1861 and Unionville was selected as the county seat. In 1873, the county seat was moved to Winnemucca. The first courthouse was a rectangular brick structure designed by James Z Kelly and constructed by Murphy in 1874 at a cost of $47,800. The courthouse was destroyed by fire in 1918. The second and present courthouse was constructed in 1920 to 1921 at a cost of $161,324.
County Courthouse – Winnemucca
Commissioners Chamber – former courtroom
Public Safety Building – Winnemucca
County Building – Winnemucca
Photos taken 2013 and 2015
Images 18