Champaign County Courthouse

The historic Champaign County Courthouse, located on Courthouse Square in downtown Urbana, Illinois.

The story of the Courthouse begins in 1833 when Champaign County was formed with Urbana as the county seat. The first courthouse, a log cabin, was so crude it saw only two sessions of court in 1836 and 1837. It was replaced in 1840 with a brick and wood frame building that served for the next 9 years. It was in this building that Abraham Lincoln appeared as a lawyer while riding the circuit.

The year 1860 saw a $30,000 remodeling of the courthouse to a steel frame with a masonry exterior. This project was initiated by the County Board in spite of the growth west of the city and the incorporation of Champaign. The project even included the creation of a horse-drawn railway from the Doane House near the depot in Champaign to the courthouse in Urbana to ensure the county seat would remain where it was originally located.