Grays Harbor County Courthouse
On my way to Aberdeen a few weeks ago I noticed a highway sign announcing that there was a visitors center at the next exit in Montesano, the county seat of Grays Harbor County. I needed a road map specific to that area including Aberdeen, Hoquiam and Westport and places in between. I still like a printed road map that helps me get my bearings when I’m on my journeys. Long story short…there was no visitors center and despite a sign with an arrow into a small strip of stores, no one in any of the local businesses had any idea what I was talking about.
As I was returning to the highway, I noticed a very large, stately looking building about three blocks away. It could not be missed driving through town. Once I got closer, I saw that it was the Grays Harbor County Courthouse, and it was inviting me in.
Interestingly this is the county’s fourth courthouse. The first was built on a blockhouse on Willapa Harbor in 1857. The second was south of the Chehalis River in the home of the county’s first white settlers, Isaiah and Lorinda Scammon. When the county government was ready to move out three years later it became a scuffle between Montesano and Cosmopolis for the next home of the courthouse. The voters selected Montesano.
The construction of the third facility was completed in 1890 near the current courthouse but its size proved to not be adequate for the rapidly growing county. Then known as the Chehalis County Courthouse today’s courthouse was occupied in 1911. In 1915 the state legislature changed the county’s name to Grays Harbor County to avoid confusion with the town of Chehalis in Lewis County.
Walking up the grand staircase with its shiny brass railings, I stopped to admire the two murals on the walls on either side of the foyer. The mural on the left was painted by Franz Biberstein commemorating the Captain Robert Gray’s arrival in 1792. The one on the opposite side, was painted by Franz Rohrbeck portraying Governor Isaac Stevens negotiating a treaty with the Indians at Cosmopolis.
Curiously, there are two errors in these paintings that both misrepresent the Indians. The Biberstein painting shows teepees, but the Northwest Indians did not use teepees. Secondly, in both paintings, Coastal Indians, with headdresses are incorrectly shown dressed as Plains Indians. Coastal Indians did not wear headdresses.
Most impressive is the stained-glass ceiling at the top of the rotunda. It is surrounded by four murals that depict scenes of the following:
Power, Justice, Truth
Science, Thought, Art
Commerce, Industry
Agriculture, Abundance, and Domesticity.
Two of the three courtrooms have murals as well. The third courtroom was originally the library and has yet to have a mural installed.
The building was originally constructed with narrow staircases. The present-day wide staircase between the second to third floors was added in 1947 to make its appearance look more distinguished. The detail and decorative touches throughout the building retain its historical feeling. The light fixtures are original and have been retrofitted for electricity. Most of the furniture and woodwork is original, and there is beautiful stenciling and wall art throughout. The four-sided clock tower adds to its dignified external appearance.
The courthouse has had its challenges. In 1999 a 5.9 magnitude earthquake caused quite a bit of damage because the building was constructed without rebar and a lot of the building is made of sandstone. Among other issues, the whole clock tower was dislodged, and the paintings were damaged because they were affixed to the building with beeswax.
Significant seismic improvements were made, and the paintings were peeled off and shipped to Seattle to be restored. When the Nisqually earthquake happened in 2001 the building weathered the impact well and had minimal damage.
The Temple of Justice-type courthouse, with its arched windows and classical columns, is rich with history and beauty. It is worth a stop on the way to the beaches or as its own destination.