Hunterdon County | US Courthouses

Hunterdon County is named for Robert Hunter, who was the colonial Governor of New Jersey from 1710 to 1720.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – Warren County and Morris County

E – Somerset County

S – Mercer County

W – Bucks County, Pennsylvania

Created: March 13, 1714

County Seat:

Trenton 1714 – 1780

Amwell 1780 – 1790

Flemington 1790 – present

County Courthouse – Flemington

Location: 71 Main Street / Court Street

Built: 1828 – 1829

Style: Geek Revival

Architect: Nathanial Saxton and Mr. Springer

Contractor: Thomas Capner as superintendent.

Description: The building faces east and is a three story white colored stuccoed stone structure. The building is located in the center of Flemington. The front has a large porch with four large white colored Tuscan columns rising to a wide header with pediment above. The recessed first story entrance is arched. On the hipped roof is an octagonal white colored cupola. There is a courtroom on the first story and the large courtroom is located on the second story. On the west side is the two story stone jail and on the north side is the Hall of Records built in the 1870’s is an Italianate structure and the County Administration Building.designed by Clarke-Canton-Hintz and constructed by Watertrol Inc. in 2005.

Note: In January of 1935, a German immigrant named Bruno Richard Hauptmann was tried and convicted for the fatal kidnapping of the twenty month old son of Charles and Anne Lindbergh, residents of Hopewell. Because of Colonel Lindbergh’s fame as an aviator, the trial created a media frenzy.

County Justice Center – Flemington

Location: 65 Park Avenue / Capner Street

Built: 1994 – 1996

Style: Modern

Architect: Vitetta Group

Contractor: Boro Developers, Inc

Description: The building faces southwest and is a three story red colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Flemington to the north of the courthouse. The southwest front has a portico with four columns rising to a pediment. On the northwest corner is a large octagonal tower and on the southeast corner is a small octagonal tower. The roof line is flat, The building has five courtrooms. The project manager was Gilbane Building Company.

History: The county was created in 1714. The courts used the 1720 courthouse located at Trenton in Mercer County. In 1870, the court met in the John Ringoes Tavern in Amwell. In 1790, Flemington was selected as the county seat and the court met in Alexander’s Tavern. The first courthouse was a two story fieldstone structure built in 1791 under the supervision of Asher Atkinson as superintendent and was destroyed by fire on February 13, 1928. Using stone from the original structure, the elegant second and present courthouse and the jail were built in 1828 at a cost of $13,513.86. The County Justice Center was constructed in 1994 to 1996.