Scioto County is named for the Scioto River which is named for the Wyandot Native American word meaning “deer”.
Created: April 1, May 1, 1803
County Seat:
Alexander 1803 – 1817
Portsmouth 1817 – present
County Courthouse – Portsmouth
Location: 602 7th Street / Court Street
Built: 1924 – 1927
Style: Neo-Classical
Architect: John Scudder Adkins of Cincinnati
Contractor: Eric Strindberg ( supervised construction )
Description: The building faces south and is a four story brick and Indiana limestone structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds and sits on a granite foundation and is constructed of yellow colored brick covered with a thin layer of marble blocks. The south front has a slightly projecting center section with seven arches on the first story. On the second and third stories are ten Ionic columns rising to the entablature. The fourth story is recessed. The north side of the building has seven arches on the first story. The roof line is flat. The interior is composed of concrete and marble with brick walls covered in white plaster. Marble columns adorn the courthouse’s exterior dome.
Note: The first courthouse was built in 1817. The second courthouse was built in 1837 and an addition was built in 1887.. The cost of constructing the third and present courthouse was $1,040,000.
Courthouses:
N – Pike County and Jackson County
E – Jackson County and Lawrence County
S – Greenup County, Kentucky and Lewis County, Kentucky
W – Adams County
County Courthouse
Photos taken 2012 and 2018