Northumberland County is named for Northumberland County in England, Great Britain.’
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Lycoming County
E – Montour County and Columbia County
S – Schuylkill County and Dauphin County
W – Perry County, Juniata County, Snyder County and Union County
Created: March 21, 1772 
County Seat:
Sunbury 1772 – present
County Courthouse – Sunbury
Location: 201 Market Street / South 2nd Street
Built: 1864 – 1885
Style: Romanesque Revival and Italianate
Architect: Samuel Sloan of Philadelphia
Contractor: D S Rissell
Description: The building faces north and is a three story white colored brick and stone structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Sunbury. The front part of the building is the original section and the addition was added in 1911 to 1915 giving the building an “L” shape. On the northwest corner is a large square bell tower rising to a rounded tower with clock and rounded roof. Another square tower is at the northeast corner. The front façade of the building has three arched doors surrounded by massive stone work and topped by a stone balcony. This stone work and the striking corner quoins of the building were probably made of brownstone quarried near Hummelstown, Pennsylvania. Second and third story windows on the front façade are topped by dripstone. The building has narrow arched windows, quoins at the corners and brackets under the eaves. The building is painted with white and brown colored trim. In the interior, the first story has marble tiled floors. The large County Court of Common Pleas courtroom is on the second story. The building houses the Court of Common Pleas of the 8th Judicial District. A wing was added in 1911. In 1915, an addition was added on the north front. The architect was William H Lee and the contractor was Shamokin Lumber & Manufacturing Company.
Note: The building was copied from the design of Samuel Sloan of Philadelphia for the Lycoming Courthouse. In 1872, the clock was built and installed by E Howard of Boston.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Northumberland County Courthouse
History: The county was created in 1772 and Sunbury was selected as the county seat. The first court met in a log house at Fort Augusta in 1772. The first courthouse was built in 1797 at the western end of the Public Square. The second and present courthouse was constructed in 1865 to 1866 at a cost of $100,000.
County Courthouse – Sunbury
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County Court of Common Pleas courtroom
County Court of Common Pleas courtroom
Photos taken 2006 and 2015
Images 20*