Property Record
100 S JEFFERSON ST
Architecture and History Inventory
| Historic Name: | Brown County Courthouse |
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| Other Name: | Brown County Courthouse |
| Contributing: | Yes |
| Reference Number: | 2070 |
| Location (Address): | 100 S JEFFERSON ST |
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| County: | Brown |
| City: | Green Bay |
| Township/Village: | |
| Unincorporated Community: | |
| Town: | |
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| Year Built: | 1910 |
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| Additions: | 1922 1992 |
| Survey Date: | 19862017 |
| Historic Use: | courthouse |
| Architectural Style: | Neoclassical/Beaux Arts |
| Structural System: | Steel Frame |
| Wall Material: | Cut Stone |
| Architect: | C.E. Bell |
| Other Buildings On Site: | |
| Demolished?: | No |
| Demolished Date: |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Brown County Courthouse |
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| National Register Listing Date: | 1/1/1976 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 1/1/1989 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: | |
| National/State Register Listing Name: | Green Bay Downtown Historic District |
| National Register Listing Date: | 5/13/2019 |
| State Register Listing Date: | 2/16/2018 |
| National Register Multiple Property Name: |
| Additional Information: | A 'site file' exists for this property. It contains additional information such as correspondence, newspaper clippings, or historical information. It is a public record and may be viewed in person at the Wisconsin Historical Society, Division of Historic Preservation. Photo code #2: 75BR-12/28-30. #650: Annex building. Beaux-Arts Classical buildings can sometimes look lavish, laden with festoons and flourishes. Here, though, C. E. Bell, an architect from Minneapolis, distilled the style to its essence: a study in symmetry and balance. The courthouse's rough granite ground floor gives way to two stories of smooth Bedford limestone, then a balustraded attic. Atop the roof, a copper-clad, clock-faced dome boasts Ionic columns, knob finials, and a crowning lantern. The plan is cross-axial, with a pedimented central pavilion dominating each facade. Bell saved the most monumental elements for the main facade: paired Ionic columns soar two stories to support a wide-overhanging cornice, below a triangular pediment with an oculus. An addition of 1992 echoes the basic form of Bell's original building. Standing sentinel at the northeast corner of the lawn, the “Spirit of the Northwest,” sculpted by local artist Sidney Bedore, portrays three key figures in Green Bay’s history: French explorer-trader Nicolas Perrot, Jesuit missionary Claude Allouez, and an unnamed Indian. Inside the courthouse, murals painted by Franz Rohrbeck and Franz Bieberstein, who came from Milwaukee, depict Jean Nicolet's 1634 landing on the Green Bay shore, battles between Europeans and native peoples, the arrival of Father Allouez, and a scene of old Fort Howard. In the dome, local history gives way to allegorical images of Justice, Agriculture, Commerce, and Industry. The wall design employs a Roman-inspired sequence of forms often adopted in American civic buildings: the first-story columns use the simple Doric order, the second-story columns boast more ornate Ionic volutes, and the third story showcases the exuberant Corinthian order with leafy capitals. The third-floor courtrooms feature stenciled ceilings, marble wainscoting, and quarter-sawn oak furnishings. Recently the county meticulously restored the chambers to their original appearance. 2017-NRHP District Nomination This building was added to the National Register of Historic Places on January 1, 1976. Completed in 1910, this Beaux Arts style courthouse was designed by Minneapolis architect Charles E. Bell. The courthouse is three stories tall with an attic story and central dome. A hallmark of this building’s form is its cross-axial symmetry. The north and south façades are identical to one another and each is symmetric about its own central entrance with pedimented central pavilion. The wider, primary façade along S. Jefferson street is also symmetric. The ground floor of the building is faced with rough granite, while the exterior of the second and third stories are smooth Bedford limestone. A balustrade above the cornice encompasses much of the attic floor. A copper-clad, clock-faced dome with lantern above sits atop the roof. Two-story Ionic columns flank each entry and support a wide, overhanging cornice with triangular pediment and oculus. Similar but smaller Ionic columns support the dome. The rear façade has a narrower three-story addition, constructed in 1992, that complements the building’s original style. The building retains a very high degree of interior and exterior [historic material]. The Brown County Courthouse is also significant for its interior paintings by Franz Rohrbeck. Murals depict the 1634 landing of Jean Nicolet, Indian battles, Old Fort Howard, and the arrival of Father Claude Allouez in the company of an Indian chief. Allegorical paintings of Justice, Agriculture, Commerce, and Industry adorn the underside of the dome. Additionally, Sidney Bedore’s sculpture “Spirit of the Northwest” stands outside at the corner of S. Jefferson and E. Walnut streets. This sculpture, dedicated in 1931, portrays an unnamed Fox Indian, French explorer Nicolas Perrot, and Jesuit missionary Claude Allouez. A flat-roof addition was constructed at the rear (west) façade between 1990 and 1992. This three-story addition has a post-modern exterior that complements the courthouse’s original style. The north-south length of the addition varies, beginning with a glass curtain wall hyphen at the historic courthouse wall, then stepping out to a longer stone paneled section (which, in turn, steps out once more to continue the stone paneled portion). The addition’s north and south façades have a triangular parapet near the west end that complements the gables on the courthouse’s north and south façades. A large, two-story window opening is situated beneath this parapet. Other window openings at the first, second, and third floors are relatively narrow, complementing both the windows of the courthouse and the narrow windows of the Brown County Safety Building (127 S. Adams) adjacent to the addition’s southern façade. The west wall of the addition is shared with the east wall of the three-story Brown County Jail building (121 S. Adams), but extends vertically higher than the four-story Brown County Safety Building. There are no openings in this west façade of the addition above the roofline of the connected buildings along S. Adams. A second addition was constructed during the 1990-1992 courthouse renovations to the south of the historic courthouse building. This addition is entirely below grade and not visible from N. Jefferson Street (the primary façade of the courthouse faces east, towards N. Jefferson). The roof of the addition serves as an outdoor courtyard. On the north side of Doty Street, the earth has been graded below street level to allow for windows in the southern wall of this below-grade addition. As a result, a keen observer will note that this addition is partially visible from Doty Street. |
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| Bibliographic References: | GREEN BAY NEWS-CHRONICLE 5/17/1994. Buildings of Wisconsin manuscript. |
| Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory, State Historic Preservation Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, Wisconsin |