Lac Qui Parle County is the French name meaning the “lake that talks”, a translation of the Dakota name for the lake “Mdeiyedan”.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Big Stone County and Swift County
E – Chippewa County and Yellow Medicine County
W – Deuel County, South Dakota and Grant County, South Dakota
Created: March 6, 1871 
County Seat:
Lac Qui Parle 1871 – 1889
Madison 1889 – present
County Courthouse – Madison
Location: 600 6th Street West / 6th Avenue
Built: 1898 – 1899
Style: Richardsonian Romanesque
Architect: Buechner and Jacobson of Saint Paul
Contractor: Olaf Swenson of Saint Paul
Description: The building faces south and is a three story red colored brick structure. The building is located on spacious landscaped grounds in the center of Madison. The walls are built of red colored brick trimmed with sandstone above a high basement of river boulders. The building is 59 feet by 134 feet and is centered by a high central tower with an open arcade. In the interior, the stairs have marble treads and there is quarry tile in the hallways and tongue-and-grove hardwood on the other floors. The open stairway has square oak newel posts and turned balusters. There are original oak stairs, banisters, wainscoting and doors. The County District Court courtroom is located on the second story. The building houses the County District Court of the 8th Judicial District.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Lac Qui Parle County Courthouse
See: The 8th Judicial District includes Big Stone County, Chippewa County, Grant County, Kandiyohi County, Meeker County, Pope County, Renville County, Stevens County, Swift County, Traverse County, Wilkin County and Yellow Medicine County.
History: The county was created in 1871 and Lac Qui Parle was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was a wood frame structure built in Lac Qui Parle in 1870. In 1886, the courthouse was moved to Madison and in 1889 the county seat was moved to Madison. The second and present courthouse was constructed in 1898 to 1899 at a cost of $30,689.
County Courthouse – Madison
County District Court courtroom
Picture 1870 County Courthouse
Photos taken 2007 and 2017