Douglas County is named for Stephen A Douglas, who was a United States Senator from Illinois.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Aurora County and Davison County
Created: January 10, 1873
County Seat:
Brownsdale 1881 – 1882
Huston 1882 – 1895
Armour 1895 – present
County Courthouse – Armour
Location: 706 Braddock Street / 1st Street
Built: 1926 – 1927
Style: Classical Revival
Architect: C Perkins & McWayne of Sioux Falls
Contractor: Gray Construction Company of Watertown
Description: The building faces west and is a three story red-brown colored brick, limestone and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Armour. The west front has a projecting center section with white colored stone facing on the first story and four columns rising from the second story to the top of the third story forming three vertical arches. Above is a header. A projecting cornice runs below the roof line and a white colored stone band runs below the second story windows. Tennessee Tavernelle marble along with plaster and red oak trim decorate the interior of the courthouse. The floor has tile design number 2, Lombardic which was made by the American Encoustic Tile Company. 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. On the north side is the old red colored brick Clerk’s Office designed by W L Dow and Sons and constructed by M C Momson was the builder.
See: The contractor, Gray Construction Company of Watertown also constructed courthouses in Clark County, Codington County, Davison County, Edmunds County, Faulk County, Hamlin County, Hyde County, Sully County and Walworth County.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Douglas County Courthouse
See: The 1st Judicial Circuit includes Aurora County, Bon Homme County, Brule County, Buffalo County, Charles Mix County, Clay County, Hanson County, Hutchinson County, McCook County, Turner County, Union County and Yankton County.
History: The county was created in 1873 and Brownsdale was selected as the county seat in 1881 when the county was organized.. The first courthouse was a building purchased in Brownsdale in 1881. The county seat was moved to Huston, three miles north of Armour in 1882. The county seat was moved to Armour in 1895 and a second courthouse was built at a cost of $6,000. The Clerk’s Office was a brick structure built in 1902 at a cost of $3,625. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1926 to 1927.
County Courthouse – Armour
County Circuit Court courtroom
Old Clerk’s Office – Armour
Photos taken 2009, 2010 and 2018
Images 18*