Macoupin County Courthouse
The first courthouse was built of logs on
property that is now the City Square. Seth
Hodges won the contract for the structure.
The record shows that construction costs
totaled $128.66.
Ten years later, the county had outgrown this
18' x 24' log structure and made plans for a
larger one on the same site. The new brick
building measured 50' x 50' and - costing
roughly $15,000 - was considerably more
expensive than the first. The contractors
were Harbird Weatherford and Jefferson
Weatherford.
Abraham Lincoln frequently represented his
clients in this courthouse. In fact, when the
State Preservation Agency examined the
Courthouse records in the 1990's, they found
over 3,000 documents with the signature
of A. Lincoln. Those original documents are
now in Springfield, but copies are on file in
the Macoupin County Courthouse.
The courthouse that Lincoln practiced in no
longer stands in the center of town because
shortly after the end of the Civil War, in 1867,
elected officials decided that the prosperous
county needed an even larger structure.
Four prominent citizens were commissioned
to erect a new courthouse: A McKim Dubois,
George H. Holliday, T.L. Loomis and Isham J.
Peebles. They selected E.E. Meyers as architect
and determined that the construction not
begin until there were sufficient funds in
the county treasury.
The court also ordered that a property tax of 50¢
per $100 be assessed in Macoupin County and that
the monies be used for county purposes, i.e. a
new courthouse.
Bonds totaling $50,000 were issued for ten-year terms
and bore interest at 10 percent. By September, over
$13,000 had been spent and in October the cornerstone
was set in place. The cost escalated dramatically from
then on. By January 1869 nearly $500,000 had been
spent and building was still not complete. The great
dome and roof would cost an additional $125,115.
More bonds were issued, and by the time the courthouse
was officially completed in 1870, the project had cost a
staggering $1,342,226.31. Thus evolved the nickname,
the "Million Dollar Courthouse."
Not only was the courthouse an exorbitant expense to
the taxpayers, rumors of a scandal involving misused
appropriations also tarnished the project. Initially, the
blame was laid on Judge Thaddeus Loomis and
George H. Holliday, county clerk. Judge Loomis was
apparently innocent of any wrongdoing. (We may never
know the truth about Mr. Holliday, however, because
one night in 1870, he boarded a train out of town
and simply disappeared.)
Upon completion, this courthouse became the largest
county courthouse in the United States, with the
possible exception of one in New York City. It was even
larger than the Illinois Statehouse. While the courthouse
still serves as the seat of county government, it has also
become a showplace that attracts tourists, architects and
artists from across the country, as well as overseas.
Despite the scandal and the expense, citizens supported
this project with amazing dedication. In 1910, a mere 40
years after the cornerstone had been set in place, the last
bond was burned and the debt retired. To mark the
occasion, 20,000 people gathered in Carlinville for
a memorable two-day celebration on July 20 and 21.
At a pre-determined hour, all mine whistles, church
bells, alarms and anything else that could make a loud
noise raised quite a ruckus. The noise wasn't limited to
one mighty blast, however, because history records that
athletic contests, balloon rides and even airplane rides
gave the citizens plenty to cheer about. A parade of cars
that stretched more than a mile also entertained the crowds.
That doesn't seem like such a spectacular event today, but
it was quiet impressive at a time when so few people
owned cars.