Guthrie County is named for Edwin B Guthrie, who was a soldier in the American-Mexican War.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Carroll County and Greene County
E – Dallas County
S – Adair County
W – Audubon County
Created: July 8, 1851
County Seat:
Panora 1851 – 1859
Guthrie Center 1859 – present
County Courthouse – Guthrie Center
Location: 200 North 5th Street / Main Street
Built: 1963 – 1964
Style: Modern
Architect: Dougher-Frevert-Ramsey
Contractor: Allied Engineering Company Inc.
Description: The building faces west and is a two story red colored brick and concrete structure. The rectangular shaped building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Guthrie City. The west front has a one story portico towards the south with glass entrance. Towards the north there are vertical concrete dividers between the windows and pink colored panels between the upper and lower windows. The roof line is flat. In the interior, the County District Court courtroom is located at the southwest corner of the second story. The building houses the County District Court of the 5A Judicial District.
See: The 5A Judicial District includes Dallas County, Jasper County, Madison County, Marion County and Warren County.
History: The county was created in 1851 and Panora was selected as the county seat. The county seat was moved to Guthrie Center in 1859. The first courthouse was built in 1859 at a cost of $2,400. The second courthouse was built in 1877 at a cost of $22,500 and burned on March 3, 1882, The third courthouse was designed by Blake & Lee and constructed by John E Motz in 1883. The fourth and present courthouse was constructed in 1963 to 1964 at a cost of $417,000.
County Courthouse – Guthrie Center
Picture 1883 County Courthouse
Picture 1877 County Courthouse
Photos taken 2008