PlacesPages: Salem Government #30: Marion County Courthouse

100 High Street NE

Marion County Courthouse on September 4, 2006

Salem is the County seat of Marion County. Marion County was created as the Champoick District by the Provisional Government Legislative Committee on July 5, 1843, six years before Oregon became a U.S. Territory and 16 years before statehood. In 1847, the name was changed to Marion County in honor of Revolutionary War hero General Francis Marion, who was known as the "Swamp Fox.” Marion County's present boundaries were established in 1856. The county measures 1,175 square miles and the elevation at Salem in 159 feet above sea level.

Marion County has had three courthouses, all on the same property, donated by William H. Willson in the 1840s. The first courthouse was a 68 foot by 40 foot wood frame building constructed in 1854. It was moved off the site in 1871 to make room for its successor and survived into the 20th century as a livery stable.

Historical Photos:
Marion County Courthouse, 1854-1871 (Oregon State Library)

The second courthouse was completed in 1873 by architect and contractor Wilbur F. Boothby, with W. W. Piper serving as supervising architect. The 34,710 square foot French Renaissance Victorian courthouse was 136 feet tall with 33-inch thick brick walls, a dormered mansard roof, and a 51-foot cupola containing a four-faced clock and topped with a statue of Lady Justice. A World War Memorial was placed in front of the courthouse in 1924. By the 1930s, the county was outgrowing the courthouse, but the Great Depression and World War II delayed construction.

Though some thought was given to locating the new courthouse on a different site in order to preserve the historic old building, it was demolished in the summer of 1952 to make way for a new courthouse on the same site. The clock was installed in the tower of the nearby Salem City Hall, while the 10-foot tall, 900 pound hollow copper statue of Lady Justice went to Willamette University's law school.

Marion County Courthouse on September 4, 2006

Construction of the new courthouse commenced promptly, and it was dedicated on June 18, 1954. The modern building is clad in white Vermont marble to match many of the state buildings nearby. Landscaping was designed by Elizabeth Lord and Edith Schryver. The World War I Memorial was moved to the Oregon Veterans' Building in 1991.

Historical Photos:
Marion County Courthouse Project, 1952-54 (Salem Public Library)
Marion County Courthouse, 1955 (Salem Public Library)
Marion County Courthouse, 1955-1965 (Salem Public Library)
Marion County Courthouse, 1961 (Salem Public Library)
Marion County Courthouse, May 21, 1964 (Salem Public Library)
Marion County Courthouse, unknown date (Salem Public Library)
Marion County Courthouse, unknown date (Oregon State Library)