Bon Homme County is named for Bon Homme Island in the Missouri River, so named by a French voyageur meaning “good man”.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
E – Yankton County
S – Knox County, Nebraska
Created: April 5, 1862
County Seat:
Bon Homme 1862 – 1885
Tyndall 1885 – present
County Courthouse – Tyndall
Location: 300 West 18th Avenue / Ivy Street
Built: 1914 – 1915
Style: Neo-Classical and Beaux Arts
Architect: Joseph A Schwarz
Contractor: A M Wold Construction Company of Brookings
Description: The building faces south and is a three story gray colored granite and concrete structure. The rectangular shaped building is located on landscaped grounds to the northwest of the center of Tyndall. On the second and third stories, there are six stone columns. The south front section projects from the main building and the base is horizontal gray colored stone. Above the entrance door is a stone crest. The interior features a rotunda with a stained glass skylight dome and circular stairwell. The floors and stairs are marble and the walls are embellished with pilasters and dentils. The light fixtures are brass and there are four large interior murals done by Axel Soderberg of La Crosse, Wisconsin. The County Circuit Court courtroom is located on the west side of the third story. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 1st Judicial Circuit and the County Magistrate Court.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Bon Homme County Courthouse
See: The 1st Judicial Circuit includes Aurora County, Brule County, Buffalo County, Charles Mix County, Clay County, Davison County, Douglas County, Hanson County, Hutchinson County, McCook County, Turner County, Union County and Yankton County.
History: The county was created in 1862 and Bonne Homme was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was a log structure built in 1873 at a cost of $3,333. The county seat was moved to Tyndall in 1885. The second courthouse was built in Tyndall in 1885 at a cost of $6,000. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1914 to 1915 at a cost of $92,000.
County Courthouse – Tyndall
County Circuit Court courtroom
Photos taken 2007 and 2018
Images 21*