Franklin County Courthouse Square

Franklin County’s courthouse is considered one of the masterpieces of noted Ottawa architect George Putnam Washburn. It was dedicated October 3, 1893 and is on the National Register of Historic Places.

The courthouse dominated the early townscape in this 1898 view. North American Hotel, now Courthouse Square Apartments, is yet to be built across the street to the north. First Baptist Church’s spire is to the right. In the foreground at Fifth & Main is The Federated Church (Presbyterian and Congregational), dedicated June 2, 1897. It was torn down to make way for Peoples National Bank that opened there in early 1967.

The first jail, a stone building built in 1866 by J. H. Whetstone, is hidden in the grove of trees north of the courthouse in this c. 1905 photo. North American Hotel will eventually replace the first buildings north of Third Street.

This is a 1987 detail photo of the courthouse roofline showing the bell and clock towers.

This early 20th century postcard of the courthouse includes the 1906 combination jail and sheriff’s residence on the left and the Rohrbaugh theater across Hickory Street on the right. The Civil War cannon and cannonballs went to a WWI or WWII scrap metal drive.

An undated photo with a closeup of the cannon and the courthouse in the background.

This undated picture was taken by Ottawa photographer E. H. Corwin sometime between the opening of the courthouse in 1893 and the building of the 1906 jail and sheriff’s residence north of it. The small stone building on the left is probably the first jail that John Whetstone built in 1866. Sanborn fire maps indicate that parts of it may have been incorporated into the 1906 building, though newspaper articles of the time state that it was to be demolished. A note on the back of this photo states that it was taken before the clock was added to the west tower of the courthouse in 1912. The Rohrbaugh theater, on the right across Hickory Street, was destroyed by fire on October 15, 1915.

Undated photo of a buggy on the north side of the courthouse.

This 1909 flood photo of Third & Hickory Streets shows the bottom level of the 1906 jail and sheriff’s residence as well as the north side of the courthouse. Note the line of laundry.

Undated postcard of courthouse square. It was taken after the 1906 jail and sheriff’s residence was built and prior to the fire that destroyed the Rohrbaugh theater across Hickory Street on October 15, 1915. First Baptist Church is on the right across Fourth Street.

Closeup of the west entrance and south side of the 1906 sheriff’s residence and jail designed by Ottawa architect George Putnam Washburn.

Undated photo of the west entrance and north side of the 1906 sheriff’s residence and jail. There’s a small building of unknown purpose on the east side.

Woodpile behind the 1906 sheriff’s residence and jail. Photo is undated but is after the building that became the North American Hotel was completed in 1917 across Third Street.

Broken wagon on the courthouse square lawn behind the 1906 sheriff’s residence and jail. View is looking west toward the 300 block of Main Street. Photo undated but from the same source as the previous one.

Register of Deeds office in the courthouse, March 27, 1901. l-r: J. W. Brinkerhoff, L. I. Porter, Olive Othick, Maude Tutcher, Mrs. Boicourt, Anney E. Waring.

April 1, 1911 dedication of G. A. R. memorial tree on the courthouse lawn. The note attached to the photo is somewhat in error, as the surrender at Appomattox that ended the Civil War occurred on April 9, 1865.

1923 eighth grade graduating classes of Franklin County rural schools, along with faculty and school administrators. This was an annual spring event in the early-mid 20th century. FCHS has similar photos from several years.

Edgar Hayes Tipton (1862-1949), retired Ottawa jeweler, working on the courthouse clock mechanism sometime in the 1940s. The clock has been temperamental over the years. Photo by J. B. Muecke.

A great summer day on the courthouse lawn. Photo taken by J. B. Muecke sometime after he came to Ottawa in 1940 and before the District Court building was built in the 1960s.

The 1961 Kansas Centennial parade passed down Main Street in front of the 1906 sheriff’s residence and jail.

Franklin County Commissioner Russell Savage and County Clerk Laura Sutton putting time capsules into the bench in front of the courthouse for the 1993 centennial of the opening of the building.

Just one of many china objects that have portrayed the courthouse over the years. This one was made in Austria for W. F. Houghton and Son, Ottawa.

Photo taken in 1987 of the hall inside the west entrance of the courthouse. The area looks much the same today.

Decorative door hinge typical of those found throughout the courthouse.

The courtroom on the second floor of the courthouse looks much the same today as ever.

Jury box in the old courtroom on the second floor. Photos of judges hang around the room.

Remnant of an encaustic (melted wax) stencil detail that is above the picture rail high on the walls of the courtroom. It has since been painted over. The following photo indicates that stencils were also above the chair rail further down on the wall. According to an early newspaper article citing the courthouse artisans, it was done by William Broderick.

The attorneys of Franklin County seated in the courtroom jury box. Note the decorative stencil on the wall behind them. It is similar to the detail shown in the previous photo. L-R, front row: ?, Roscoe Redmond, Benjamin F. Bowers, Joseph Sheldon, ?, John Quin (or Walter Pleasant). L-R, back row: ?, John B. Pierson, William S. Bowers, Basil Kelsey, ?, ?, Myron Steer, Floyd Coffman, Robert A. Anderson, Ruby Sanford, Asst. Clerk, Christina Woke, Clerk of the District Court.Photo by J. B. Muecke is undated but probably taken in the 1950s.

An ornate railing divided the public audience area of the courtroom from the working area for attorneys, defendants, the jury and the judge.

The courtroom came alive again in early June, 1989 when the made-for-TV movie “Cross of Fire” used it for filming a 1920s trial.

Many Ottawans and KU drama students were extras for the made-for-TV movie “Cross of Fire.” Here they are gathered on the east steps of the courthouse. June, 1989.

The offices of the Fourth District Court replaced the old jail and sheriff’s residence north of the courthouse in the 1960s. An addition was made to the west end of the building in 1974.

South side of the District Court building.

The two-story building behind the flagpole was built in the 1960s as the jail and offices of the sheriff and Ottawa police department. It is now used by the 911 dispatchers. The Franklin County Detention Center building was added to this building in 1992. Although the law enforcement buildings appear to connect to the District Court building, they are separate.

Franklin County Detention Center was completed in 1992 on the west side of Hickory Street. It was added to the 1960s building that housed the jail and offices of both the sheriff and Ottawa Police Department until the police moved out in 1976 to join Ottawa Fire Department as the Department of Public Safety. The administrative offices of the sheriff and the Franklin County attorney moved to Franklin County Criminal Justice Center on Beech Street in mid-2015.

Plaque on the Adult Detention Center on the west side of the third block of Hickory Street.

The Franklin County Veterans Memorial was dedicated November 11, 1999 on the southwest corner of courthouse square. Organizers spent five years raising funds for the $120,000 memorial. A newspaper clipping states that the memorial was designed by James Sullivan, an Overland Park architect who volunteered his services, as did many others.

Plaque at Franklin County Veteran’s Memorial, southwest corner of courthouse square.

As part of the major renovation work that has gone on for several years, construction crews replaced the heating and air conditioning system in the courthouse throughout the spring and summer of 2014. The window ac units visible here are now gone.

In March 2004 Ottawa Main Street Association commissioned Inola, Oklahoma chainsaw artist Clayton Coss to sculpt Ottawa architect George Washburn from a tree stump near the northwest corner of courthouse square.

Coss returned to Ottawa in June 2004 to sculpt Tauy Jones from a tree stump on the south side of courthouse square as part of Skunk Run Festival activities. In 2010 both carvings were returned to the artist for restoration. Stone bases were added when they were reinstalled.

“Buffalo Woman,” a bronze statue by Charlie Norton, Leoti, stands near the west entrance to the courthouse. The statue was dedicated in October, 1989 to celebrate Ottawa’s 125th anniversary.

One feature of the celebration of Ottawa’s 150th anniversary in 2014 was the addition of tiles in the style of the Ottawa tribe’s beadwork and a medallion of the original town company’s seal to the base of the Buffalo Woman sculpture. Hasty Awards, Ottawa, developed the medallion from printed material. Dick Crooks, Crooks Floor Covering, Ottawa donated his time and materials to install the medallion and bead work. Ottawa beadwork is unusual in the use of pastel colors.