Starke County is named for John Starke, who was a New Hampshire General who defeated the British at the Battle of Bennington in 1777 in the American Revolutionary War.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – LaPorte County and Saint Joseph County
E – Marshall County
S – Pulaski County
W – Jasper County and LaPort County
Created: February 7, 1835 
County Seat:
Knox 1835 – present
County Courthouse – Knox
Location: 53 East Washington Street / North Main Street
Built: 1897 – 1898
Style: Romanesque
Architect: Wing & Mahurin of Fort Wayne
Contractor: Caldwell & Drake of Columbus
Description: The building faces south and is a three story gray colored stone and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Knox. The building is built of rock-faced stone blocks and has a large wide arch on the first story on each side with a large arch above framing the windows. On each corner of the roof are stone parapets. On the center of the roof is a large square stone clock tower with red colored hipped roof. The interior has hardwood and ceramic-tiled floors, plaster and panel wall treatments, and ornate cornice and pilaster capitals. The staircase is accented by ornamental iron balusters, marble steps, and a patriotic ceiling painting of Liberty located between the first and second stories. Ionic capitals with polychrome gilding, eagle, and shield are found on hall columns and pilasters. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 3rd Judicial District.
See: The architect, Mahurin & Mahurin ( Wing ) of Fort Wayne also designed courthouses in DeKalb County, Hancock County, LaPorte County and Monroe County.
See: The courthouse in Ottawa County, Ohio is similar in design.
See: The contractor, Caldwell & Drake Construction of Columbus, Indiana also constructed courthouses in Boone County, Monroe County and Putnam County; in Ohio in Mahoning County and Ottawa County; in Pennsylvania in Somerset County, and in West Virginia in Wetzel County and Wood County.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Starke County Courthouse
See: The 3rd Judicial District includes LaPorte County and Pulaski County.
History: The county was created in 1835 and Knox was selected as the county seat in 1850 when the county was organized. The first court met in the log home of Jacob Tillman. The first courthouse was a frame structure erected on the corner of Mound Street and Pearl Street in 1851 at a cost of $475. The second courthouse was built on the public square in 1863 at a cost of $20,000. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1897 to 1898 at a cost of $130,000.
County Courthouse – Knox
Photos taken 2008