AAC
FEATURE
The third-floor courtroom retains a great deal of detail — a paneled judge’s bench flanked by tall wooden pilasters with Ionic capitols,three fan lights that provide a dramatic backdrop to the bench, and a high coffered ceiling.
the final Classical Revival design for the new building. Te three-story courthouse, completed in 1928, consists of three bays on the front façade. Te center bay features an arcaded porch reached by wide limestone steps. Five arches are articu- lated by rusticated limestone detail and keystones. Te first floor consists of rusticated limestone spans and the second and third floors are veneered in yellow brick. Te center bay above the porch is lit by five graceful fan windows flanked by six limestone pilasters. A square limestone panel below the central fan reads “Sovereignty Rests with the People.” A wide lime- stone frieze beneath a projecting cornice displays a relief carv- ing reading “Benton County Courthouse.” Four squat pilas- ters rise above the cornice to a stepped pediment, in the center of which is a small limestone date stone with “1928” carved in relief. Te pediment is topped with a projecting keystone. Two side bays flanking the main entry of the façade are mir-
ror images. Windows on the first floor are divided light, while the windows on the second and third floors are one-over-one double-hung openings with fixed transoms. Limestone or- namentation consists of corner pilasters and wide projecting limestone cornices spanning the top floor beneath a brick pediment. Te north and south elevations of the courthouse feature projecting center bays and minimal limestone orna- mentation. Additions to the rear of the building obscure the original
COUNTY LINES, FALL 2019
detail but match the scale and materials for an appropriate transition. In 1965, a structure for the jail was built behind the courthouse. Tis was separate until 2000, when the Judicial Tower was added to the rear of the courthouse. At that time the two structures were joined by a breezeway. Te back wall and windows of the 1928 courthouse have been retained in a hallway abutting the Judicial Tower. In the 1980s, a one-story juvenile detention center was added to the rear of the jail. Te 1965 jail is now the prosecuting attorney’s administrative of- fices, and the juvenile detention building is used for storage. Te lobby of the courthouse is largely original and features walnut wainscoting and trim. Curving staircases on the north and south sides display cast iron newel posts embellished with floral swags and egg and dart detail. Iron balustrades in a square geometric pattern are topped with wooden handrails. Te Classically detailed third-floor courtroom retains a great deal of detail. Te paneled judge’s bench is flanked by tall wooden pilasters with Ionic capitols. Tree fan lights provide a dramatic backdrop to the bench. Te high coffered ceiling of the courtroom is finished with a pliable rubber covering that mimics the panel and rosette detail of traditional metal ceil- ings. Te material used was an early attempt at sound deaden- ing. It is not known when it was applied, but ornate wooden
See “COURTHOUSE” on Page 32 >>> 31
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