Racine County is named for the Root River with the French word for “root” being “racine”.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Waukesha County and Milwaukee County
E – Lake Michigan
S – Kenosha County
W – Walworth County
Created: December 7, 1836 
County Seat:
Racine 1836 – present
County Courthouse – Racine
Location: 730 Wisconsin Avenue / 7th Street
Built: 1930 – 1931
Style: Art Deco / Modern Movement
Architect: John W Root, Jr. and John A Holabird
Contractor: B & W Construction Company
Description: The building faces south and is an eleven story limestone, concrete and copper structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Racine. The bold exterior is faced with Bedford limestone, cut by vertical columns of steel framed plate glass windows. The square building is tired and has four corners projecting from the building for three stories. The center entrance doorways project from the building. The roof line is flat. In the interior, the lobby walls are faced with Chiaro marble above Belgian Black colored marble “wainscoting” and Champville marble floors. Statuary bronze doors on the elevators manufactured by Art Metal Company of Jamestown, New York bear figures representing Agriculture and Industry. Bronze medallions set with scales of justice decorate each pair of elevator doors from the second through seventh stories. Images of animals and wheat trim swinging doors at the entrance. A variety of rich woods finish the court rooms on the first story with Austrian Oak and African Mahogany in the Circuit Court, American Walnut in the County Court, Mexican Mahogany in the Judges rooms, English Oak and California Walnut in the County Board Room, Butternut in the Municipal Court, and Walnut wainscoting in the Information Booth. The building houses the County Circuit Court of the 2nd Judicial Circuit.
See: The 2nd Judicial District includes Kenosha County and Walworth County.
History: The county was created in 1836 and Racine was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was a Greek Revival structure built in 1839. The second courthouse was a Second Empire structure designed by H C Koch and constructed by J Bentley & Son 19b 1878, The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1930 to 1931.
County Courthouse – Racine
Photos taken 2007