The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1895-10-12
Works. OLD COURT HOUSE.

| YORk'S OLD COURT HOUSE.
Additions Now Under Way Will Make 1t a
Modern Building the Inside.
| Quite extensive repairs are going on in
the old Court House of York county at
Alfred. An addition twenty six feet long
| Is being added to the rear, two stories
high. The cellar wall for this addition
is nearly finished. This addition will be
accompanied by interior changes. The
| 'front.' stairs in the main hall will be re-
moved and the space now occupied by the
stairs will be added to the court room,
thus admitting light from this room to
| the street The stairs in the rear of the
hall will be moved back.
| Hard wood floors, modern furniture,
steam heat, plumbing and sewer 1000
| feet long will be accessories of the i'm
provements. The work will be done in
time for the May term of Court
| This court house is one of the Oldest
buildings in the State. Alfred was not
originally the county seat. In 1873 the
| town of York secured the court house by
paying half the cost of erection. In 1895
there was quite contest over the re-
moyal of the court house, and the vote
| was as follows, according to an investi-
CATION made by Mr.. L. B. Chapman in
| the York records:
Dantisfalls 211
| Kennebunk, 100
| Sanford, 10
| Alfred, 155
Cocktail. "a
WATERFORD. 6
! "No place has majority
! Then the Legislature was petitioned to
send board of commissioners and fix q
place. the court standing 10 in favor and
is opposed to Kennebunk. At subse-
quent test the court stood 10 for Alfred
and II opposed.
| In. 1906 the matter was again referred to
the people to determine upon place, and
there were 1131 votes cast, of which num-
Der 679 were in favor of Wells and Alfred,
| 'that part of Wells called Kennebunk. y
| In 1905 the court was of the opinion
that the mole" opposite Capt. Webber's,
partly on the land of Abial Hall, Esq.
and partly on the land of William Par
ons, Esq. in Alfred, wan the right spot
or county court house, aQd building
| l40x50 feet, two story high with proper
hipped roof, with five widNws on each
side of glass 10x12 inches, the inside fin
ished in manner to accommodate the
court, bar, suitors, ETC., at probable
cost of $3,ooo,'' was ordered; and this
nole," is the site of the present York
county Court House.
In what was called fire-proof building
of small dimensions, that stood in front
and to the left hand side of the court
house as it was entered from the highway
the records of the county were kept from
a few years after the erection of the court
house till 1854, when they were removed
to the present quarters.
| In 1858 John F. Scam1non and 276 other
inhabitants of the county thought and
thus represented by petition that the
present court house is too small, uncom-
Portable and inconvenient, that there is
need of a larger room for the court, large
room for library and lobys, and more con-
venient and larger jury rooms, and it
would be much more convenient if the
county Offices could be in the same build
ing; then there would be less liability in
carrying papers from the court rooms to
the Offices. -
| The County Commissioners agreed with
the petitioners and estimating the ex-
pense of the two "fire-proof WINGS" as
now seen, at es9, O51.73, 'portico, $500
inside alterations and renovations at
several thousand dollars commenced
work.
From that time the exterior of the
court house of Old York County at AL
fred, has not been changed. 1t lis about
ten rods from the highway, on elevated
ground, with four rows of sugar maple in
front, extending from building to the
highway, and with its projecting gable
supported by four large pillars, balcony
between them and building, cupola,
wings of brick, two stones on each side
with signs in letters of gold designating
the location of the several county offices,
the structure presents to the eye of the be-
holder a very creditable appearance, and
long may it remain.