page_title: Johnson County Courthouse (Iowa)
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Johnson County Courthouse (Iowa) / History
caption_attribution_description: English: Courthouse tower, johnson county, Iowa, on the NRHP
context_page_description: The Johnson County Courthouse in Iowa City, Iowa, the county seat of Johnson County, was completed in 1901; it was the second courthouse to stand at this location. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975.
context_section_description: Johnson County's first courthouse was a two-story frame structure built in 1838 in Napoleon. After the county seat was moved to Iowa City a 56-by-28-foot (17.1 by 8.5 m), two-story brick courthouse, was completed in 1842. A jail was built at the same time. The first courthouse built on the present courthouse square was built about 1856, but the records are unclear as to its specifications. In 1875 a suggestion was made that the courthouse should be donated to the University of Iowa, and the city and county would build a joint facility. The measure was to be put to the voters, but it never appeared on a ballot. By 1897 cracks were detected on the south wall, endangering the structure and the records it housed. Construction on the present courthouse began in 1899. The building was completed in 1901 for approximately $111,000. Its slate roof was damaged in a 2006 tornado.
caption: detail of courthouse tower.
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