Hampshire County Court House HistoryHAMPSHIRE COUNTY
� !_ s
GEORGE J. BOYLE
DIRECTOR
A $RIEF HISTORY OF THE
HAMPSHIRE CIX.&Jy COURT HOUSE
Northampton was settled in 1654. In those times, a session in court
required a journey to Springfield by land or by water. In March 1658, the
city agent petitioned the C7reat and C-eneral Court of Massachusetts with a
request that the court sessions be alternated between the two towns. The
Court, recognizing the hardship and inconvenience caused by the travel,
granted the request. The first court session was held in Northampton on
March 24, 1658. Regular sessions began in 1661, and the next year,
Hampshire County became the fifth incorporated county in the state.
No documentation exists regarding "the location of those first court
sessions. Local historians conjecture that some sessions might have been,
held in the meeting house, which axis the sole public building in town, or
at John Webb's tap room, located where the Rahar's building now stands.
After about 75 years, the need for a permanent structure became ap-
parent.
THE FIRST COURT HOUSE - Erected 1737
This simple building was constructed of native lumber from the county
towns. It stood near the easterly corner of the present court house lot.
It would have been about halfway between the fountain and the boulder
marking the site of the first meeting house.
Colonel Seth Pomeroy uxas in charge of the construction. The building
cost 206 pounds, 13 shillings and 6 pence. Northampton paid half of the
cost, and the other county towns split the remainder proportionally. It
served as a Court House and meeting place for 31 years. In the court room
there was no fireplace, and it was poortV lighted. There were only 2 win-
dows on each side.
The structure was not maintained, and deteriorated badly. It was
ultimately abandoned, until Robert $reek purchased it in 1782 for 4 pounds,
8 shillings and 9 pence. lie moved it first to the eastern corner of Main
and King Streets, and then to Market Street.
-I-
413 584 -7904
COURTHOUSE 99 MAIN STREET NORTHAMPTON, MASSACHUSETTS 01060
n
b
THE SEaXib ICCURT HOt: ES Erected 1767
frequent discussion surrotmded the decision about where to locate the
new
Court House. Colonel Israel Williams of Hatfield allegedly noted
that: "The people of Hatfield are industrious and thriving and to have the
courts there would injure their industry and thrift. Northampton people
are very religious, and the measure could be injurious to their religion,
but Hadley has neither thrift nor immortality to be injured." Ultimately,
Northampton was designated as the town for the Court House.
There was controversy within the town about where to construct the
building. Strong support existed for putting it opposite'College Hall.
However, town officials held sway, and the land near the old Court House was
chosen. The plot, at that time, was owned by Elisha Alvord. He sold it
for 130 pounds. The land covered in the deed was different from the plot
as it exists today: it was about half the size and irregularly shaped. It
is not clear from county records how the rest of the land was obtained.
The second structure was almost as plain as the one it replaced. Its
cost was 353 pounds. The one extravagance was a large figure of Justice,
blindfolded, with a sword in one hand and balance scales in the other.
Also, a bell was rung for the opening of court sessions, and daily at noon
and 9:00 p.m. for curfew.
Many dramatic events occurred at this Court House. Mobs stormed the
edifice in 1782 to protest the heavy tax burden being imposed on them due
to the war debt. Riots continued in the next few- years, paving the. way for
Shay's Rebellion. A precursor to the Rebellion occurred in 1786, when .
Daniel Shays stormed the Court House with a mob of rioters. They forced
the session to adjourn temporarily.
On November 20, 1822, the building caught on fire. attempts to extin-
guish the flames were fruitless. Luckily, people running from the building
managed to salvage loose documents and records, and items in the interior
fireproof rooms were saved. The origin of the fire is unknown. It was
thought that the chimney might have been cracked below the roof, which
damage was caused by a severe wind storm.
Before a replacement could be built, court sessions were held in a
large room in the Warner House, a nearby tavern.
221= COURT HOUSE -- Erected 1823
Isaac bxwn designed the Federal- style, 45 by 68 feet building. Brown-
stone steps led up to the sole entry to the building. Each room had a fire-
place. However, there were no water closets until after 1871, when the
waiter works were built.
Charles Forbes delivered the dedicatory address on April 28, 1823.
Jerusalem Lodge members conducted the cornerstone laying ceremony; contents
of the cornerstone included silver and copper coins from this and foreign
countries. The oldest coin dates back to 1176, with an impression indicating
the reign of Canute, King of Tigland.
-2-
The County Comiii ss i oners purchased a 4.19 lb. - be-l1 'which had been cast
in Paul Revere's foundry in Boston. Revere's son, Joseph, did the work_
on the bell. The bell was used to call lawyers, witnesses, jurors, and
spectators to court sessions. The High Sheriff led these elaborate pro-
cessions.
Lawyers who had come from remote areas sometimes had to wait overnight
for their cases to be tried. They stayed at homes of local attorneys, or
barring invitations, at the Mansion House.
As years went by, lawyers and judges found many inadequacies with the
building. One petition for a new Court House was drawn up by Judge Williams
Bassett in June 1883. Citizens, lawyers and judges signed it.
Another petition to the County Commissioners was delivered by the Grand
Jury in the same month. The document includes many reasons for the need for
a new Court House,._ including the following:
Not safe from fire for protection of records.
Jury rooms not large enough for convenience and health of jurymen.
They were damp, unhealthy and uncomfortable.
No rear entrance.
Unsuitable heating and ventilation.
No waiting room for witnesses, "especially ladies, who must now sit in
a crowd of men in the court room."
No room for witness to consult privately with counsel.
Coats, hats, rubbers and umbrellas cluttered - the - court room.
Only one =ter closet.
Probate Office and Register of heeds Office too small.
Deliberations in the Grand Jury: room were overheard in the Probate Office.
No cellar under a large part of the building, rendering the roams cold
and uncomfortable.
k<ot air pipes were so near the floor that at times they charred the floors
above them.
Opposition among the citizens to the. new building was based primarily
on the fear that the construction would impose an undue tax burden. farming
=s depressed during that period, and real estate, in most of the county towns
uas depreciating. Because of the uncertain future, many farmers, businessmen,
and real estate owners felt the cost of a new structure was not justified.
In the end, those in favor of a new building gained their wish. The County
Commissioners) at a special meeting on March 23, 1886, voted to build the
new Court .House. A loan of no more than $85,000 was to be petitioned from
the State Legislature.
While the third Court House was being torn down and construction be-
ginning on the present building, temporary quarters were found for the various
court procedures as follows: Probate Court and the County Clerk were in the
second floor of the Smith Charities; Register of heeds was in the third floor
of the Hampshire County Bank building; it is unclear where the court room was
located, but possibilities include the Northampton City Hall, the Amherst
and Fasthampton town halls, and the chapel at the jail.
-3-
n
Various comments on the work of destruction of the third Court House
included "wicked" and "too good a building to tear down."
The Northampton Historical Society currently is in possession of the
weathervane that had been atop the belfry of this Court House.
FOLJRTH COLT BO SSE Erected 1886
Bids ,.for.constructi.on . of.the building came from contractors,fram to
within the county, Worcester, Holyoke, Boston and New 1 1 ork. The highest was
$90,000.00. Bidders quoted their prices according to the categories 'granite,
"brick and brownstone, " and "al t brownstone. "
Bartlett Bros. of Whately was awarded the contract for $68,200. Plumbing,
gas - piping, heating, painting, decoration and furniture were not part of
the contract: The -contract was signed on May 18, L886 and the building was
to be completed within 14 months.
Henry Kilborn of New York was the architect. His style is heavily in-
fluenced by that of Henry Hobson Richardson. Tichardsonian Romanesque °°
is distinguished by the round armed style, combined with the use of rock -faced
masonry, deep window openings and large simple forms.
John Doherty of Springfield took charge of the stone work. He had 52 men
working under him during most of the construction period. ALL granite was
cut on the spot.
This Court House was situated at the site of the previous one, but 15
feet further back, 25 feet further front, and the west side about in the middle
of the third Court House foundation.
- -Some Architectural Particulars.
Dimensions are 70 by 10¢ feet; the center portion is 52 feet wide; the
tower is 96 feet high.
The granite came from Puwrston, VT. No stone was less than 6 inches
rm
in thickness. All moulds, window silts, arches, etc., above the basement
are of Longmeadow brownstone. Columns of the porch are of red beach granite.
Rooms were fireproofed with brick watts of 16 to 20 inch thickness.
The fireproof rooms were the Register of heeds, the Probate and Clerk's
record rooms on the first floor, and the court room on the second floor. Iron
doors also protected the rooms, as well as iron beams laid in the floor.
There was no woodwork in the fireproof rooms.
The roof was made of Manson, ME, black state, with iron rafters and trusses.
The floor beams in the non fireproof rooms were 3 by 12 spruce boards.
Wood finish, casings, doors, water closets, etc., were of white ash. On the
first and second floors, the wood in the front halls, court room, commissioners'
office, Register of Deeds copying room, County Clerk's Office was quartered oak.
Otherrooms on the first floor were in cherry. four rooms on the second floor,
in the front, were of pine. All iron doors were grained in imitation of the
wood work about them.
Speaking tube connected the main court room with the clerk's office.
s
Ten air shafts in the walls in the middle of the building connected
with the outer, rooms for ventilation. Rooms in the rear connected with a
Z6 -inch round flue. The main sewer connected with the ventilator, running
from the rear of the building.
Bronzed steam radiators heated all rooms.
Fach room had its purpose stated in cut letters on glass panels.
On August 28, 2886, the cornerstone was laid with the fanfare of a
Masonic ceremony. Grand Master Abraham H. Howland, of New Bedford, officiated.
After the cornerstone ceremony', the.spectators and officials removed to the
grove at the top of Round Hill Road, where an elaborate clambake had been
prepared.
While all of the Probate, bistrict, and Superior Court procedures have
been relocated to the Court House Annexes, the original Court House continues
to serve as the center of county business.
Prepared by Lynn Warner Historical Researcher
for the Hampshire County bepartment of Planning
and Regional Services
-5-