Mississippi County - American Courthouses

Mississippi County is named for the Mississippi River which borders the eastern side of the county, and which name is derived from the Algonquin Indian word “missi” meaning “great” and “seepee” meaning “water”.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – Dunklin County, Missouri and Pemiscot County, Missouri

E – Dyer County, Tennessee, Lauderdale County, Tennessee and Tipton County, Tennessee

S – Crittenden County

W – Poinsett County and Craighead County

Created: November 1, 1833

County Seat:

Chickasawba Bluff 1833

Osceola 1833 – 1901

Osceola 1901 – present (Osceola District)

Blytheville 1901 – present (Chickasawba District)

* Mississippi County has two county seats

County Courthouse – Blytheville

Location: 200 West Walnut Street / North 2nd Street

Built: 1919 – 1921

Style: Classical Revival

Architect: Selligman and Ellesvard of Pine Bluff

Contractor: Stewart-McGee Construction Company

Description: The building faces south and is a four story brick, stone and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Blytheville. The first story is faced with stone. The upper stories have buff brick divided by vertical stone dividers. Above the first story entrance is a small wrought iron balcony. The fourth story is recessed and has a flat roof line. In the interior there is a two story entrance lobby with marble stairs. The large County Circuit Court courtroom is located along the south side of the second story and extends into the third story. There is an antique chandelier and at the rear is a balcony. The ceiling decoration was restored by Evergreene of New York City, New York. On the third story there is a small courtroom at the center and a large courtroom along the north side in the new addition. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 2nd Judicial Circuit. An addition was constructed along the north side in 2022 to 2024. The architect was Revival Architecture Inc. of Scott and Revival Architecture and the contractor was Construction Network, Inc. of Jonesboro.

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County Courthouse – Osceola

Location: 200 West Hale Avenue / Walnut Street

Built: 1912 – 1913

Style: Beaux Arts

Architect: John Gaisford of Memphis, Tennessee

Contractor: Falls City Construction Company of Louisville, Kentucky

Description: The building faces south and is a three story stone and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Osceola. The south front has a large porch with four high columns supporting a wide header with raised parapet along the top. The first story is sealed to prevent flooding and the main entrance is located on the second story. On the center of the roof is a large copper dome. In the interior the floors are baked stone tile. The eight-inch tile on the second story is red, blue, green, and pink; on the third, they are gray, green, rust, and black. Symmetrical marble and wrought iron staircases from the second story meet on the third story outside the County Circuit Court courtroom which is along the south side. The courtroom has wide plaster cornicing and exposed beams which form an arch in each corner of the room. At the end of each beam is a Roman olive branch decoration. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 2nd Judicial Circuit. The building was restored in 1991. The architect was John K Warriner of Osceola and the contractor was Oldfield Restoration of Cabot. In 2020 to 2021, the dome was restored. The architect was Revival Architectures of Scott and the contractor was Renaissance Historic Exteriors of Belvidere, Illinois. The copper work was completed by Revere Copper Products Inc. of Rome, New York.

Note: The floors throughout this building are the work of an artist. It is the only building in the county – and one of the few in the state – where baked stone tile has been used.

See: The 2nd Judicial Circuit includes Clay County, Craighead County, Crittenden County, Greene County and Poinsett County.