The month of March was a busy time for Dent County pioneers a hundred years ago as they made plans to build a new court house. The first court house of logs had burned to the ground, the second had gone up in smoke, although it had been built over a cistern for fire protection. When the second court house went up in flames, so did all the recorder’s books and early papers of the county except one, Book E. Wallace McDonald, Circuit Clerk and Recorder of Deeds, had the book at his home so he could work at night and it was saved from the big fire.
The forefathers had a great insight for the future in reserving Block 11 of the City of Salem for the court house in Dent County. It was only a briar patch then but they could foresee the beauty of the lot and businesses around the square a hundred years ago. On March 30, 1870, the plans for the present court house, by Randolph Brothers, St. Louis, were accepted and, J.S. Wingfield was named commissioner of public works. A.E. Dye was given the contract to build the court house for $15,500. It was proposed to issue bonds but the amount was borrowed from another fund. In 1871, the court house was accepted and $1,700 more was expended on it.
A.E. Dye came here to build the court house and remained to build other buildings and to make his home. He was known as one of the best builders in that day. The brick was kilned here in Dent County. Other skilled workmen who came to help erect the court house were: D.N. Garner, who was a carpenter and he remained to live out his life in Salem; a man named Burright made the brick for the court house; Henry Smith, a carpenter and lathe operator and joiner, turned the rails and spindles for the stairways and circuit court room out of black walnut. Jesse Hickman, a joiner and carpenter, helped build the stairway and his grandson, Charles Hickman, relaid the steps and risers in the 1930’s. N.A. Smalley was a plasterer who came and stayed. His son, George A. Smalley, was a lathe and plasterer man for years and in later years served as a circuit clerk and recorder for Dent County. E.L. Dye, a young man, assisted his father in contract work and became a leading contractor of buildings in later years.
John W. Hagler has this to say about the building of the courthouse in his column East Salem: “I suppose the second brick house in Salem is probably the Dent County Court House built by A.E. Dye in 1870. It is one of the best buildings of brick built here. I was a lad of eight years living four miles from town when with my parents we came to town in their wagon. I sat in the wagon and watched the men building the court house. They were up past the second floor and it was the biggest house in the world to me. Jim Landers, one of the hod carriers, got a whiff of what John Organ called ‘bug juice’ and fell off the building. He was only slightly injured and went back to work again in a day or two. I suppose there are several people past 75 years that will remember the building of the court house. All of the stumps had not been dug out of the streets of Salem at the time.”
The court house was built to stand strongly as it was constructed out of huge sills and joists of heavy hewn timbers. Two parallel walls were built inside just as strong as the outside walls and all of the brick. The hall runs east and west with offices on either side and a small vault for records. The second floor was built for a circuit court room and two offices on either side in front. They were merged in the court room when the east addition was put on. The tall windows on both floors were imposing for that day. They were raised and lowered by weights, a new idea in the 1870’s.
There was no basement to the courthouse and flues were built in the walls for heating purposes by stoves. In the days of wood stoves each officer was responsible for procuring his own wood, chips and the removal of ashes. There was always an unsightly mess of wood on the east side, along with the outside privies.
The foundation is hewn limestone, so are the steps under the small portico. The steps show wear from the tread of many feet over them since 1870. On the north step is a U.S. government bench mark, showing date and altitude at the point and firmly set is lead. The limestone was chiseled out of the mark set. The altitude is 1,187 feet above sea level and it tells how much the fine will be for tampering with it.
The Masonic Lodge No. 225 of Salem furnished the money to construct the third floor under a 100-year lease free rent. It is a picturesque hipped mansard roof and it is an architectural gem today. The lease was made in 1870 but when the Masons purchased the present Lodge, known as Fincher’s Opera House, the lease was surrendered to the county. It is now mainly used for storing old records, but for a long time the front part was used for Grand Juries. The Masons used the ante-room for preparing candidates for admission and the initiation took place in the main room.
The addition on the east was built in 1896-7 and was to be the same height as the old building but the architect ran out of money and cut it off minus one story. The new building had offices for sheriff and county court on the first floor, grand jury, petit jury and surveyor on the second floor and a twisting narrow stairway on the east side. When the addition was made, the portico was removed and put on the east end of the addition with a different design of fresco work. The addition provided an additional vault room and circuit clerk and collectors offices were moved to this new quarters. In the early days only money was accepted for taxes as there were no banks in the county. The money had to all be stored in the vault or in business houses that had vaults.
A jail was planned to go under the building on the south side where sunlight and air might reach it but persons objected that the jailbirds might see out and insult women passing by so it was put on the north side where no sun reaches it and later capped it with heavy screen rods. L. Judson, a prominent lawyer, labeled it “the dungeon” and it has been that ever since. It has been condemned by Grand Juries and health officers.
Originally the court house was fenced in with wood posts and fencing boards and whitewashed. Stiles were maintained at each corner instead of gates. The outside steps were of ¾ inch iron rods to prevent goats, hogs, cattle, and sheep from entering the yard. At first, only the big oak trees grew in the yard then some court had them cut down and planted the maples which have almost disappeared from age. There were also elm and locust trees but they were destroyed in the fires of Salem. Large post with iron chains were on the outside of the fence for hitching teams and horses.
In 1896/7 Judge Robert M. Askin, Presiding Judge of the county court, Jack Biggs, Judge of the north district, and Judge Belew of south district had the old and rotted fence removed and a fine iron picket fence erected. Gates were provided and in a short time the hogs rooted in the yard. In 1897, while George W. Peck was mayor a stock law was enacted and vigorously enforced and this saw the passing of the “hick town” era of Salem. No longer would Mrs. Mary Mantz’ fine milk cow follow the wagons loaded with hay and eat her fill as they went down 4th street. Oft remembered was Mont Dye’s rocky mountain mule from Mexico feeding heartily on the farmers feed for free if he were not riding the small fry around town.
After the stock law was passed the iron fence was removed. The courtyard was filled out and seeded in new trees set out. A band stand was erected and concerts were held in the summertime and speeches given on Memorial Day and the Fourth of July from the stand. Then when the Dent block burned in 1924 the band stand was torn down to save the court house. The walks were built around the court house and square in 1916 when William Roney was mayor. The hitch racks around the square for farmers to tie their horses were still there and at times the court house was ringed in filth as it was seldom cleaned off. The issue about removing the hitch racks from the court house square became one of the hot contests in the following political elections. Finally, conditions got so bad the county court and city council removed the posts and chains and had the area graveled.
When the city put in a water system in 1924 when George A. Slawson was mayor the last hitch racks had to go. The court house installed in-door toilets, not adequate, but a big improvement over the outside closets.
The old cistern under the court house prior to 1866 was an eye sore until 1940 when it was filled in with dirt and stones. The drilled well had a fountain of granite erected over it. The city laid the city water through a pipe into the well and it was drawn out at a new fountain by a faucet. At one time there was a large circular trough for horses to water at the fountain site.
And, today in this same 100 year old court house the people of Dent County walk over the same old limestone steps to the center hallway where they pay their taxes and transect business with the county. The old walnut stairwells and benches of the court have long since been painted but the same workmanship is evident in their shape.
Of the present county employees, Eunice Blackwell who works in the Magistrate Probate Office, probably has been the longest employed at the court house. She will have worked there 17 years in April.
Today, in March 1970, our court house is our most valuable well preserved landmark in Dent County. It is the only landmark with so much history recorded within its walls. Among historical architects it is considered a gem and people have been known to have driven miles just to see its beauty. Perhaps we, who live here, do not fully appreciate or recognize its value as a historical monument of the early history of Dent County.
(The above history was taken from Goodspeed’s History of Dent County; Elmer’s History of Dent County and J.W. Hagler’s column East Salem).
--Reprinted from The Salem News, March 9, 1970.
