Sussex County is named for the county of Sussex in England.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Orange County, New York
E – Passaic County and Morris County
S – Morris County and Warren County
W – Pike County, Pennsylvania
Created: May 16, 1753 
County Seat:
Newton 1753 – present
County Courthouse – Newton
Location: 3 West High Street / Spring Street
Built: 1847 – 1848
Style: Greek Revival
Architect: Amos A Harrison
Contractor: Samuel Fowler and Moses R Andrews of New York
Description: The building faces southeast and is a two story white colored stone and wood structure. The building is located in the center of Newton and is rectangular shaped with gable roof. The southeast front has a large porch with six large white colored Doric columns rising to a wide header with pediment at the roof line On the roof is a cupola with red colored roof. In the interior, the public stairway enhances the lobby giving dual access to a landing, at the site of the original 1761 doorway, and thence to the second story courtroom. On December 29, 1910, a fire damaged the courtroom and attic of the building, wrecking the cupola. In April 1911, contracts worth $7,461 for improvements to the Court House were awarded to Thomas Farrell, carpenter, and to O’Donnell & McManiman, masons. To the east is the County Administration Building.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Sussex County Courthouse
County Judicial Center – Newton
Location: 43 West High Street / Spring Street
Built: 1987 – 1989
Style: Modern
Architect: Vitetta Group
Contractor: Termininal Construction Company
Description: The building faces southeast and is a four story red colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located in the center of Newton to the west of the courthouse. The southeast front has a semi-circular section with five white colored columns rising to the top of the second story. Horizontal bands run across the lower part of the building. The green colored roof is hipped.
History: The county was created in 1753 and Johnsonburg became the county seat. The first courts were held in the Amos Petitt tavern and a log jail was erected in Johnsonburg. The first courthouse was built in New Town ( Newton ) in 1761 and Newton was selected as the county seat. The second courthouse and jail were designed and built by Abraham Van Campen, Jacob Starn and John Hackett on the “plantation” of Henry Hairlocker in 1861. The building was renovated in 1844 and a second story added. The architect and contractor was Amos A Harrison. The courthouse burned in 1847. The cost of the construction of the third and present courthouse in 1847 to 1848 was $15,000. Amos Harrison did the carpentry work and General Lyman Edwards put on the tin roof. They brought some sailors from New York to take down the old steeple. The old iron weathervane was sifted from the ashes. Mahlon Hurd, John Struble, and John Slockbower did the mason work, while Robert Gray presided at the mortar bed. Sheriff Andrew Shiner was the general boss. The County Judicial Center was constructed in 1987 to 1989.
County Hall of Records – Newton
Location: 4 Park Street / West High Street
Built: 1929 – 1930
Style: Georgian Revival
Architect: LeRoy A Cowan of Kelly & Cowan
Contractor: Reliable Construction Company of Cliffside.
Description: The building faces north and is a two story red colored brick, steel and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Newton to the southeast of the courthouse. The north front has four columns rising to a pediment at the roof line. The central entrance is framed. The flat roof has a low concrete parapet with corner pedestals surmounted by molded urns; a corbeled chimney is located near the rear. The octagonal wooden cupola with tent roof, surmounted by original arrow weathervane is on the center of the hipped roof.
Note: The cost of construction was $88,877. Joseph Straulina & Ivan Wright installed the plumbing at a bid of $3,350 and S J Cranford of Jersey City installed the heating system at a bid of $7,927. Electrical work was done by Richard P Ward of Dover at a bid of $4,518.
County Administration Building – Newton
Location: 1 Spring Street . West High Street
Built: 1988 – 1990
Style: Modern
Architect: HQW Architects of Newton
Contractor: Troast Construction Company.
Description: The building faces southwest and is a three story buff colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Newton to the east of the courthouse. The building is “L” shaped with a two story white colored porch at the center of the north and east wings. There is a one story white colored porch on the east side and an enclosed porch on the northwest side. A projecting cornice runs between the second and third stories. The roof line is flat. The building is named as Cochran Plaza.
County Courthouse – Newton
County Judicial Center – Newton
County Hall of Records – Newton
County Administration Building – Newton
Photos taken 2014