St. Clair County | US Courthouses

St. Clair County is named for Arthur St. Clair, who was the first governor of the Northwest Territory, or for the Saint Clair River as named by the French explorer La Salle.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – Sanilac County

E – Ontario, Ontario

S – Ontario and Macomb County

W – Macomb County and Lapeer County

Created: September 10, 1820

County Seat:

St. Clair 1821 – 1870

Port Huron 1870 – present

County Courthouse – Port Huron

Location: 201 McMorran Boulevard / Fort Street

Built: 1953 – 1954

Style: Moderne

Architect: Wyeth & Harman and Smith, Hinchman & Grylls

Contractor: Collins and Catlin Company of Port Huron and A J Etkin Construction Company of Detroit

Description: The building faces south and is a three story buff colored brick, limestone and concrete structure. The building is located on spacious landscaped grounds in the center of Huron. The front of the building is faced with limestone and the rear section has brick construction. The entrance is located on the west side of the building front. The main entrance section projects with long vertical windows on either side of the doorway and with a long vertical window above the doorway. The roof line is flat. In the interior there are murals and mosaic tiles. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 31st Judicial District, County District Court and County Probate Court. The building was renovated in 1980 to 1982 when the third story and east and west wings were added. The architect was Roy G French Associates and the contractor was The Management of Michigan Inc. The building was renovated in 2002. The contractor was Dunn Constrion / Watson Brothers. On the front lawn is the bell from the 1872 courthouse.

Note: There is a County District Court courthouse located in Marine City at 2088 South Parker Street.

County Administrative Office Building – Port Huron

Location: 200 Grand River Avenue / Fort Street

Built: 1996 – 1998

Style: Modern

Architect: William Vogan Architects

Contractor: Unknown

Description: The building faces north and is a two story buff colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds to the south of the courthouse. The north front has a one story portico at the central entrance. Behind, the building rises to a peak with glass panel walls. The roof line is flat.

History: The county was created in 1821 and St. Clair (Palmer) was selected as the county seat. The first met at the home of James Fulton. The first courthouse was a two story log and clapboard structure built by Charles Phillips and Daniel Stewart in 1827 to 1828 at a cost of $500. An addition was built in 1839. The courthouse was destroyed by fire in 1855. The second courthouse was a brick structure built in 1859 at a cost of $1,500. In 1870, the county seat was moved to Port Huron and the county occupied a school building. The third courthouse was the City Hall built in 1872 to 1873 at aof $31,440. Wings were built in 1896. The courthouse was damaged by fire in 1949. The fourth courthouse was constructed in 1953 to 1954 at a cost of $2,300,000. The cost of the 1980 expansion was $5,000,000.

See: Michigan’s County Courthouses by John Fedynsky