| OCR Text |
Show The Box Elder County Courthouse A FOR1 50 YEARS THE VEAL CENTER OF BOX ELDERC OUNTY government has. been the courthouse at One ~ ain'streetB, righam City. The first section of the courthouse was built in 1857. What is now the nondescript rear wing was pioneer Brigham City's civic center. The nearly all- Mormon community held Sunday worship services in the large upstairs room of this building. On Saturdays public dances were held in the basement, which also served as a theater. Some scenery was painted directly on the back walls. This original courthouse was constructed by workers of the Brigham City Cooperative Association, which built and owned most of the town. This did not mean exclusiveness, for virtually the whole town belonged to the co- op. Each adult male was asked to donate one- tenth of his time or materials to building the courthouse. Field stone was used for the basement walls and local brick for the upper story. During the winter of 1856 a temporary roof protected meeting- goers. A permanent roof was placed the next spring but was blown away in a horrific wind storm. Leaders u dth is opportunity to double the size of the courthouse from 22 x 45 feet to 45 x 65 feet. By 1867, when Brigham was incorporated as a city, the Mormon population had been divided into wards or parishes, each of which built its own chapel. The Fourth Ward and a school wntinued to meet in the courthouse until 1880 when it was turned over entirely to the county wmrnissioners to conduct county business. Each morning and evening the courthouse bell signaled workers' schedules at the co- op factories. The bell also served as a fire alarm. The years before and after the turn of the century were a heyday for American and Utah small towns. During this period, the courthouse was twice remodeled. In 1887 it was updated to reflect current architectural tastes, with an Italianate clock tower added. Besides county commission meetings, quarterly city meetings convened in it. In 1910 a much larger expansion occurred. A massive wing was added to the old adobe rectangle. This wing, designed by the Brigham City firm of Funk and Wells, was also two- storied but boasted the Greek temple- like facade that remains today. The expanded courthouse had room for growing county services, including courtrooms, judges' and commission chambers, clerk' s, recorder's, and assessor's offices, and the sheriffs department. With the exception of minor additions made in the 1960s the courthouse has kept its 1910 flavor for 86 years. It is the best example of Neoclassical architecture in Box Elder County. r THE HISTORY BLAZER ArECZrS OF UTAH'S PAST FROM THE Utah State Historical Society 300 Rio Grande Salt Lake City. ' CT 84101 ( 801) 533- 3500 . FAX ( 801) 533- 3503 ( more) One note about the bell: the pioneer bell cracked in 1892. A borrowed replacement also cracked from being rung too many times during the statehood celebration of 1896. In 1897 a new bell was purchased for $ 433. Source: Box Elder County Courthouse, Nomination Form, National Register of Historic Places, Preservation Office files, Utah Division of State History; Lydia Walker Forsgre~ l, H istory of Box Elder County ( Brigham City: Daughters of the Utah Pioneers, 1937). THE HISTORYB LAZERi s produced by the Utah State Historical Society and funded in part by a grant liom the Utah Statehood Centennial Commission. For more information about the Historical Society telephone 533- 3500. 960615 ( BB) |
