Hanson County is named for Joseph R Hanson of Yankton, South Dakota, who had settled in the area.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Sanborn County and Miner County
E – McCook County
W – Davison County
Created: January 13, 1871
County Seat:
Rockport 1873 – 1880
Alexandria 1880 – present
County Courthouse – Alexandria
Location: 720 5th Street / Walnut Street
Built: 2009 – 2010
Style: Modern
Architect: Herm Harms
Contractor: Puetz Corporation of Mitchell
Description: The building faces south and is a one story wood frame with brick veneer and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds on the east side of the center of the city. The building has a low pitched hip roof except in the front where there is a gable roof above the double glass doors. The front entry has pillars on each side of the entry which supports an entablature bearing the words “Hanson County Courthouse”. In the interior, the County Circuit Court courtroom is located at the center of the north side of the building. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 1st Judicial Circuit and the County Magistrate Court.
Former County Courthouse – Alexandria
Location: 720 5th Street / Walnut Street
Built: 1904 – 1905
Style: Neo-Classical
Architect: W R Parsons and Son of Des Moines, Iowa
Contractor: J W Detwiler & Company
Description: The building faced south and was a two story rectangular grayish colored brick structure. The building had a projecting center sections on each side. The base was rough stone. A horizontal white colored band was located at the roof line. The courtroom was on the second story. The building was demolished on December 1, 2008.
Note: The W R Parsons and Sons of Des Moines, Iowa designed four of South Dakota’s county courthouses in Faulk County (1905), Turner County (1902) and Yankton County (1905).
See: The 1st Judicial Circuit includes Aurora County, Bon Homme County, Brule County, Buffalo County, Charles Mix County, Clay County, Davison County, Douglas County, Hutchinson County, McCook County, Turner County, Union County and Yankton County.
History: The county was created in 1871 and Rockport was selected as the county seat in 1873 when the county was organized. The county seat was moved to Alexandria in 1880. The first courthouse was constructed in 1904 to 1905 and was demolished in 2010 when the second and present courthouse was constructed in 2009 to 2010.
County Courthouse – Alexandria
County Circuit Court courtroom
Former County Courthouse – Alexandria
Photos taken 2007, 2011 and 2018
Images 20*