Ellis County is named for First Lieutenant George Ellis of company I, twelfth Kansas infantry, who was killed on April 30, 1864 at Jenkins Ferry, Arkansas.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Rooks County
E – Russell County
S – Rush County
W – Trego County
Created: February 26, 1867 
County Seat:
Hays 1867 – present
County Courthouse – Hays
Location: 1204 Fort Street / East 12th Street
Built: 1940 – 1942
Style: Art Deco
Architect: Mann and Company of Hutchinson
Contractor: Ralph Hunter Construction
Description: The building faces west and is a three story yellow colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Hays. The building has a raised basement and the recessed center section rises above the north and south sections. On the north and south sides the building is tired. Three long vertical windows are above the entrance canopy on the west side with long narrow windows on either side. The roof line is flat. In the interior, a staircase on the west side ascends to the third story. The large County District Court courtroom is located on the east side of the third story and has a high ceiling. There are two small courtrooms on the second story. The building houses the County District Court of the 23rd Judicial District. The building was a Work Projects Administration project. On the east side is the two story Law Enforcement center. The building and the Law Enforcement Center were renovated in 2014. The architect was Treanor Architects of Kansas City and the contractor was MW Builders of Kansas City.
See: The architect, Mann & Company of Hutchinson, designed courthouses in Ellsworth County, Graham County, Lane County, Pratt County, Republic County, Scott County, Stafford County and Stevens County.
See: The other courthouses in Kansas which were constructed with federal government funding under WPA and PWA are located in Jewell County and Kearny County.
See: The 23rd Judicial District includes Gove County, Rooks County and Trego County.
History: The county was created in 1867 and Hays was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was a two story native stone structure built in 1873. The second courthouse was a two story native stone structure designed by C W Squires and built by Ziegler & Dalton in 1898. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1940 to 1942.
County Courthouse – Hays
County District Court courtroom
Fort Hays State Historic Site – Hays
Photos taken 2007 and 2010