Merced County is named for the Merced River which in Spanish is “El Rio de Nuestra Senora de la Merced River of Our Lady of Mercy ) as named by Gabriel Moraga in 1806.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
E – Mariposa County
S – Madera County and Fresno County
W – San Benito County and Santa Clara County
Created: April 19, 1855 
County Seat:
Snelling 1855 – 1872
Merced 1872 – present
Old County Courthouse – Merced
Location: 627 West 21st Street / N Street
Built: 1874 – 1875
Style: Italian Renaissance Revival
Architect: A A Bennett of San Francisco
Contractor: A W Burrell & Company of Oakland.
Description: The building faces southwest and is a two story white colored plastered brick structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds of Courthouse Square Park in the center of Merced. The building has a raised basement. The southwest front has steps leading up to a one story portico on the first story with balcony on the second story. The columns Doric. On the center of the roof is a cupola resting on two stacked drums. The lower drum is decorated with double columns in the Palladian motif. The upper drum is pierced by Roman style windows which are flanked by pilasters. At the top is a laminated wooden statue of Minerva, the Roman goddess of wisdom. Wooden statues of justice adorn three of the vault ends. In the interior, the stairs are decorated with darkly stained and highly carved redwood newel posts. The former courtroom was located on the second story and had a skylight. The building houses a museum. An addition was built on the north side in 1913.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Merced County Courthouse
County Courthouse – Merced
Location: 2260 N Street / West 23rd Street
Built: 2005 – 2007
Style: Modern
Architect: Nacht & Lewis
Contractor: Brown Construction Inc..
Description: The building faces west and is a two story yellow and white colored concrete and glass structure. The west front has a projecting center entrance with wide concrete frame. The north and south sections project with large recessed window between on the second story and the entrance below. The north side has a square tower with pitched roof. A balustrade runs along the west front roof line. The roof line is flat.
See: The county is located in the 5th Appellate District Court of Appeal – Fresno
County Courts Building – Merced
Location: 640 West 21st Street / M Street
Built: 1949 – 1950
Style: Modern
Architect: Walter Wagner
Contractor: Harris Construction Company
Description: The building faces southwest and is a one story white and yellow colored concrete structure. The southwest front has a high center section framed with black colored stone. Across the front are vertical pillars with a recessed wall. The roof line is flat.
County Administration Building – Merced
Location: 2222 M Street / West 23rd Street
Built: 1974 – 1975
Style: Modern
Architect: Franceschi-Lopez-Schreifer
Contractor: Harris Construction Company
Description: The building faces southwest and is a three story concrete and glass structure. The rectangular building has central entrances on the south and north sides. Between the stories are wide extensions. The windows on each story are vertical with vertical concrete dividers. The roof line is flat.
Old First County Courthouse – Snelling
Location: 15922 Highway 59 ( Main Street ) / 3rd Street
Built: 1857
Style: Federal
Architect: Unknown
Contractor: Unknown
Description: The building faces southeast and is a two story white colored wood frame structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds of the Community Square in the center of Snelling. The southeast front has a staircase ascending to a wide porch on the second story. The roof is hipped. The building houses the Municipal Court.
History: The county was created in 1855 and Snelling was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was a two story wood frame structure built in 1857 and is still standing. The county seat was moved to Merced in 1872. The second courthouse was constructed in 1874 to 1875 at a cost of $55,970 and is still standing. The third courthouse was constructed in 1949 to 1950 and is still standing. The fourth and present courthouse was constructed in 2005 to 2007. The Los Banos Justice Center was constructed in 2014 to 2016.
Old county Courthouse – Merced
County Courthouse – Merced
County Courts Building – Merced
County Administration Building – Merced
Photos taken 2013
Images 25