Big Horn County is named for the Big Horn Sheep, which reside in the area.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Yellowstone County and Treasure County
E – Rosebud County and Powder River County
S – Sheridan County, Wyoming and Big Horn County, Wyoming
W – Carbon County and Yellowstone County
Created: January 13, 1913 
County Seat:
Hardin 1913 – present
County Courthouse – Hardin
Location: 121 3rd Street West / North Crow Avenue
Built: 1936 – 1937
Style: Art Deco
Architect: J G Link & Company of Billings
Contractor: Works Project Administration ( local trades )
Description: The building faces south and is a two story rose colored ashlar limestone, brown colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on spacious landscaped grounds in the center of Hardin. The south front projects from the main building and the central entrance projects with high brick corners rising to a wide white colored header above the flat roof line. A wide white colored band follows the roof line around the building. In the interior, a hallway leads into the addition where the County District Court courtroom is located on the east side and the County Justice Court courtroom is located on the west side. The building houses the County District Court of the 22nd Judicial District and County Justice Court. The building was constructed under the Works Project Administration. An addition was built on the north side in 1978 to 1979. The architect was Coxwell and the contract was R P Whitten & Associates and Associated P & C Engineers.
Note: The construction put over one hundred men to work during the Great Depression. The rose-colored ashlar limestone was quarried forty miles south of Hardin.
See: The architect, John G Link of Montana ( in association with Charles S Haire and others ) designed courthouses in Montana in Carter County, Custer County, Dawson County, Granite County, McCone County, Musselshell County, Richland County, Rosebud County, Sheridan County and Silver Bow County; in Oregon in Jackson County and in Wyoming in Park County, Sheridan County and Washakie County.
See: The 22nd Judicial District includes Big Horn County, Carbon County and Stillwater County.
History: The county was created in 1913 and Hardin was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was the two story Sullivan Building designed by Curtis G. Oehme of Billings and built by Bruer & Stanton of Billings in 1913 at a cost of $35,000. The building is still standing at 307 North Center Avenue and 3rd Street. In 1918 the county moved to the second courthouse which was a two story structure named as the Lee-Wilson Building built by Perry Wilcox and W O Lee in 1918 at a cost of $60,000. The courtroom was on the second story and the building is still standing at 403 North Center Avenue at 4th Street. In 1923, the county moved back to the Sullivan Building until the third and present and present courthouse was constructed in 1936 to 1937 at a cost of $150,000.
County Courthouse – Hardin
Commissioner Minutes 1936
Photos taken 2009, 2012 and 2022