Built 1887 Opened 1887 Added to NRHP 2 July 1981 | NRHP Reference # 81000262 Phone +1 712-542-3873 Architect William Foster | |
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Location Main St.
Clarinda, Iowa MPS County Courthouses in Iowa TR Address 112 E Main St, Clarinda, IA 51632, USA Architectural styles Italianate architecture, Gothic architecture Similar Osceola County Courthouse, Humboldt County Courthouse, Buena Vista County C, Ida County Courthouse, Tama County Courthouse | ||
The Page County Courthouse in Clarinda, Iowa, United States was built in 1887. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981 as a part of the County Courthouses in Iowa Thematic Resource. The courthouse is the fourth building the county has used for court functions and county administration.
History
The first building erected to house county business in Page County was destroyed, along with county records, in a fire in 1858. Two years prior to that a two-story frame building was constructed as a courthouse, but the space provided inadequate and court was held in churches and school buildings. In 1873 a simple building was constructed on the town square in Clarinda for $7,456.
The foundations for the current courthouse were laid in 1885 and the building, completed in 1887, cost $86,500 to construct. The state fire marshal ordered the removal of the clock tower in 1950 because of falling bricks. It was removed in 1951 and replaced with a wrought iron railing and flag pole. The courthouse was gutted in a fire on December 11, 1991. A bond issue was passed by voters in August 1992 for $875,000 and another $175,000 in private donations was raised to replace the clock tower. The restored courthouse was rededicated on June 5, 1994.