Clarion County is named for the Clarion River which flows through the county.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Venango County and Forest County
E – Jefferson County
S – Armstrong County
W – Armstrong County, Butler County and Venango County
Created: March 11, 1839 
County Seat:
Clarion 1839 – present
County Courthouse – Clarion
Location: 421 Main Street / North 5th Street
Built: 1883 – 1885
Style: Queen Anne and Romanesque Revival
Architect: E M Butz of Allegheny and D English of Brookville
Contractor: P H Melvin.
Description: The building faces south and is a three story red colored brick and stone structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Clarion. The south front has a projecting five story square red colored brick clock tower rising 200 feet with small balconies below the clocks and a steep roof with Lady Justice at the top. The first story entrance is framed with stone and above are narrow vertical windows on the second and third stories. The roof is hipped with dormer windows. In the interior, the corridor and the lobbies are paved with ornamental tile. On the second story are the court rooms. The main courtroom is 74 feet long, 55 feet wide, and 45 feet high and is lighted by 12 double windows and four chandeliers of 18 lights each. On the north side is the old jail built in 1873 to 1874.
Note: Henry Warner of Allegheny, executed the fresco work. The painting was under the supervision of H H Holbrook, of Clarion and D D Dunkelbarger, of Brookville. The tile floors were laid by the Star Encaustic Tile Company of Pittsburgh. The clock dial nine feet in diameter, and bell, weight 1,313 pounds, were furnished by the Howard Clock Company from New York.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Clarion County Courthouse.
History: The county was created in 1839 and Clarion was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was built by Derby & Clover, Edward Derby of Ridgway and Levi G Clover of Clarion in 1842 at a cost of $10,636.16. The second courthouse was designed by John R. Turner of Carlisle and was built by Daniel & Edmond English of Brookville in 1863 at a cost of $15,720. The building was damaged by fire in 1882. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1883 to 1885 at a cost of $126,936.
County Courthouse – Clarion
Old County Jail – Clarion
Photos taken 2011