Aitkin County | US Courthouses

Aitkin County is named for William Alexander Aitkin ( Aitken ), who was a fur trader with the Ojibwee Native American people.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – Itasca County

E – Saint Louis County, Carlton County and Pine County

S – Kanabec County and Mille Lacs County

W – Crow Wing County and Cass County

Created: May 23, 1857

County Seat:

Aitkin 1857 – present

County Courthouse – Aitkin

Location: 209 2nd Street NW / 2nd Avenue NW

Built: 1929 – 1930

Style: Beaux Arts and Moderne

Architect: Toltz, King and Day of Saint Paul

Contractor: Standard Construction Company and E C Pell

Description: The building faces north and is a three story buff colored brick, stone and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Aitkin. The building is constructed with Bedford limestone. The north front has a projecting centre section with vertical stone ornamentation. A wide cornice runs below the roof line. The interior has marble wainscoting, oak woodwork, terrazzo floors and stained glass skylights. The courtroom is located on the south side of the second story. The building houses the County District Court of the 9th Judicial District. The south annex was designed and constructed by Nor-Son Inc. in 1990. An addition was constructed in 2018 to 2019 on the west side. The architect was BKV Group of Saint Louis Park and the contractor was Contegrity Group Inc. of Little Falls. The old red colored brick jail was demolished..

See: The architect, Toltz, King & Day of St. Paul, Minnesota designed many courthouses.

See: National Register of Historic Places – Aitkin County Courthouse

See: The 9th Judicial District includes Beltrami County, Cass County, Clearwater County, Crow Wing County, Hubbard County, Itasca County, Kittson County, Koochiching County, Lake of the Woods County, Mahnomen County, Marshall County, Norman County, Pennington County, Polk County, Red Lake County and Roseau County.

History: The county was created in 1857 and Aitkin was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was a leased schoolhouse in Aitkin in 1858. The second courthouse was constructed by Alexander Grant in 1887 at a cost of $13,200. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1929 to 1930 at a cost of $155,000.