Jackson County is named for Andrew Jackson, who was the President of the United States from 1829 to 1837.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Perry County
E – Franklin County and Williamson County
S – Union County
W – Perry County, Missouri and Randolph County
Created: January 10, 1816 
County Seat:
Big Muddy River 1816 – 1817
Brownsville 1817 – 1843
Murphysboro 1843 – present
County Courthouse – Murphysboro
Location: 1001 Walnut Street / South 11th Street
Built: 1926 – 1927
Style: Greek Revival
Architect: Nelson Strong Spencer & Son of Chicago
Contractor: English Brothers of Champaign
Description: The building faces east and is a two story reinforced concrete structure. The building is located on the landscaped grounds of the Courthouse Square in the center of Murphysboro. On all sides are narrow porticos supported by four large columns with pediment at the roof. Lamp standards sit on each side of the wide stone steps on each side of the building. Along the roof is a concrete balustrade. In the interior, the corridor wainscoting is marble as are the rotunda walls. Winding circular stairwells are on the east and west sides of the atrium. The courtrooms and judge offices reside on the second story. The second story has a square gallery looking down on the first story. There is a gallery open to the skylight from the first story. The gallery banister is oak and the balustrades are electroplated bronze and iron. The ceiling and skylight contain coffers with dentils and crown moldings. They are painted in a contrasting palette to illuminate the details. The original marble wainscoting and terrazzo floor remain throughout the gallery. All of the doorways are in their original locations. The original columns and recessed ceilings remain inside the courtrooms and the ceilings and walls maintain the original embellishments. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 1st Judicial Circuit.
See: The contractor, English Brothers of Champaign constructed courthouses in Clay County, Madison County and Tazewell County.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Jackson County Courthouse
See: The 1st Judicial Circuit includes Alexander County, Johnson County, Massac County, Pope County, Pulaski County, Saline County, Union County and Williamson County.
History: The county was created in 1816 and Big Muddy River was selected as the county seat. The court first met at the home of Nathan Davis at Muddy River in 1816. The county seat was then moved to Brownsville in 1816 and the first courthouse was a two story structure erected on the public square in 1816. The courthouse burned in 1843 and the county seat was moved to Murphysboro. The early court proceedings were conducted in a frame house that had been moved to Murphysboro in 1844. The second courthouse was a two story frame structure completed by Pauley & Company in 1845 at a cost of $4,659.00. The third courthouse was constructed in 1857 to 1859 at a cost of $7,000. The fourth and present courthouse was constructed in 1926 to 1927 at a cost of $375,000.
County Courthouse - Murphysboro
Photos taken 2007, 2008 and 2012