Looking Back on the
Brown County Courthouse
~ by Julia Pearson
Justice in early Brown County was meted out by a circuit riding judge, believed to be dispensed in a private home made of logs two stories high, not far from the Reasoner Orchard home on the Lanam Ridge Road.
A year after Brown County was formed by the State Legislature and when Nashville was designated the county seat, tandem building projects for a courthouse and jail were deemed civil necessities.
According to archival records provided by George Fleener, a contract for the building was awarded to David Weddle in 1837.” It was constructed of hand-hewn logs,“ chinked and daubed with mortar.” It was two stories and of true rectangular design, with two rooms above and a stairway at each end. The ground floor consisted of one room. Fireplaces were the sole source of heat. The cost of the first courthouse and jail was $ 700. The courthouse was in use until 1853. The log building was then sold and the logs were used as a stable for a half century.
A contract was let to John Douglas to build a courthouse of brick on the same site for a cost of $ 7000 and it was finished by 1855. In the interim, court was convened in the Methodist Church.
A November morning fire in 1873 claimed the courthouse and many records were lost in the flames along with the walls and doors. The Brownstown Banner reported on November 12, 1873 that the whole court room was on fire when discovered. Citizens succeeded in getting out the
20 Our Brown County • Jan./ Feb. 2014