Brown County is named for Alfred Brown of Hutchinson County, who served as a territorial legislator in 1879.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Dickey County, North Dakota
E – Marshall County
S – Day County and Spink County
W – McPherson County
Created: October 1, 1879
County Seat:
Columbia 1881 – 1887
Aberdeen 1887 – 1889
Columbia 1889 – 1890
Aberdeen 1890 – present
County Courthouse – Aberdeen
Location: 101 Southeast 1st Avenue / South Lincoln Street
Built: 1904 – 1905
Style: Classical Revival and Renaissance
Architect: Kinney and Detweiler of Minneapolis, Minnesota
Contractor: Miller & Company
Description: The building faces south and is a two story buff colored sandstone and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Aberdeen. The building is constructed with cut Berea sandstone. Two giant Corinthian brown colored columns of Ortonville granite decorate the front entrance, which is topped with a Greek style pediment. Quoins enhance the building on all corners. Third story windows on the corners and near the entrances are roundheaded with keystones in the Renaissance tradition. Second story windows have triangular pediments. All of the other windows on all floors have plain surrounds. At the center of the roof is a large open cupola supported by columns with a four faced clock and gold colored Statue of Justice at the top. Two different sizes of Roman Doric columns in sets of two support the dome. A balustrade runs along the flat roof line. The County Circuit Court courtroom is located on the third story and contains a mural by Odin J Oyen of Madison, Wisconsin..The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 5th Judicial Circuit and the County Magistrate Court.
Note: The Berea sandstone used on the walls was quarried near Cleveland, Ohio. The giant Corinthian columns of Ortonville granite are twenty feet high and twenty-eight inches in diameter at the base. These columns were said to be the largest single-piece columns west of Chicago when they were placed on the Brown County Courthouse.
See: Odin J Oyen of La Crosse, Wisconsin painted murals in the courthouses located in Iowa - Osceola County: Michigan - Shiawassee County; Minnesota - Grant County; North Dakota - Cass County; South Dakota - Yankton County; and Wisconsin – La Crosse County (demolished), Lafayette County, Langlade County and Manitowoc County.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Brown County Courthouse
See: The 5th Judicial Circuit includes Campbell County, Day County, Edmunds County, Faulk County, Marshall County, McPherson County, Roberts County, Spink County and Walworth County.
History. The county was created in 1879 and Columbia was selected as the county seat in 1881 when the county was organized. The first courthouse was erected in Columbia after 1879. The county seat was moved to Aberdeen in 1887. The county seat was moved back to Columbia in 1889 and again returned to Aberdeen in 1890. The second courthouse was a wood frame structure built in 1890 and the first courthouse in Columbia became a school. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1902 to 1904 at a cost of $120,000.
County Administration Building – Aberdeen
Location: 101 Southeast 1st Avenue / South Lincoln Street
Built: 1972 – 1973
Style: Modern
Architect: Herges, Kirchgasler & Associates
Contractor: Kyburz Construction Inc.
Description: The building faces south and is a two story buff colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on the west side of the courthouse in the center of Aberdeen. The south section of the building is one story and the north section rises to two stories. The roof line is flat. The building is named as the County Office Building.
County Courthouse – Aberdeen
County Circuit Court courtroom
County Administration Building – Aberdeen
Photos taken 2006, 2009 and 2016