Cass County | US Courthouses

Cass County is named for George Washington Cass (1810-1888), president of the Northern Pacific Railroad.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – Steele County and Traill County

E – Norman County, Minnesota and Clay County, Minnesota

S – Richland County and Ransom County

W – Barnes County

Created: January 4, 1873

County Seat:

Fargo 1873 – present

County Courthouse – Fargo

Location: 211 9th Street South / 3rd Avenue South

Built: 1904 – 1906

Style: Renaissance Revival and French Second Empire

Architect: Charles E Bell of Minneapolis, Minnesota

Contractor: Johnson & Power

Description: The building faces east and is a three story brown colored sandstone structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds on the south side of the center of Fargo. The building is 70 feet by 109 feet when opened on July 31, 1906. The building is faced with Port Wing brown colored sandstone. Belt courses delineate the foundation and each story. In the center is a square tower with a pair of free standing polished granite Roman Ionic columns on each side of the first story entrance and rising to a pediment. On the roof is a square sandstone tower with clock and silver colored dome. At the center a rotunda rises with domed roof. The original County District Court courtroom was removed but two County District Court courtrooms flank the rotunda on the third story. In 1981 to 1982, an addition was added on the north side. The architect was Clark, Holman and Moorhead Ltd. In 1986, an addition was added on the south side. The architect was Clark, Holman & Moorhead Ltd. In 2012 an addition was constructed on the west side named as the Law and Courts Building to house additional County District Court courtrooms. The building houses the County District Court of the East Central Judicial District. The addition has a wide hall with courtroom along the north side. The architect was Kimme & Associates and the contractor was Meineck–Johnson Company of Fargo. On the west side of the building is the new jail facilities. On the west side of the building is the County Courthouse Annex.

See: The architect Charles E Bell of Minneapolis, Minnesota designed many courthouses.

See: National Register of Historic Places – Cass County Courthouse

See: The East Central Judicial District includes Steele County and Traill County.

County Courthouse Annex – Fargo

Location: 1010 Second Avenue South / 10th Street South

Built: 1994 – 1995

Style: Modern

Architect: TL Stroh Architects of Fargo

Contractor: Meinecke-Johnson Company of Fargo

Description: The building faces east and is a four story red colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Fargo on the west side of the courthouse. Narrow horizontal concrete bands run between the stories and along the flat roof line. The building is located on the site of the Central High School which burned in 1966 and is connected to the courthouse by a sky-bridge..

History: The county was created in 1873 and Fargo was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was a two story structure built in 1874. The building was used as a YMCA and boarding house and then torn down in 1967. The second courthouse was a two story structure designed by Daniels & Proctor and built by Megar & Kelly in 1883 at a cost of $50,000. The courthouse was destroyed by fire on November 7, 1903. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1904 to 1906 at a cost of $141,000. The County Courthouse Annex was constructed in 1994 to 1995. The County Law and Courts Building was constructed in 2012 at a cost of $16,000,000.