Oh, South Dakota!A happy voice welcomed me to the state! If only a similar courthouse had greeted me! Well, it was the 1970s. Specifically, 1978, as my extensive research would reveal (it was not extensive). There was a stone out front from an older 1898 courthouse, but otherwise, this courthouse was “meh” with a capital … Continue reading 695. Elk Point, Union County (SD01) →

Look at that glorious hunk of art deco!  This was very much not what I expected to find up here.  Art deco usually has a simple elegance to it, but in this case, it was both simple and detailed in equal measure.  The figures carved over the entranceway were gorgeous!  There were a few possible … Continue reading 694. Sioux City, Woodbury County (IA06) →

This one was a little different from the examples I’d been seeing on this trip: low and long instead of tall with a smaller footprint.  Were the builders trying to emulate stucco?  Not a clue, but certainly unexpected this far north.  That wasn’t the strangest thing, though.  The strangest thing was the flagpole, which looked … Continue reading 693. Dakota City, Dakota County (NE14) →

Red brick? Check.Square tower? Check.What?  Is this Kansas?  Not so much, I guess, since it seems to have detail work similar to Cass County.   Overall, I give it good marks.  Bravo, Onawa!  Oddly enough, I had a weird series of emotional ups and downs here.  I stopped at a grocery store for a newspaper, and … Continue reading 692. Onawa, Monona County (IA05) →

This is a lovely courthouse. Nice classical features, but the copper roof really sets it apart. I don’t know if it was originally designed that way or if it was added later, but it definitely made the courthouse memorable. The moment I saw the building, the roof just caught my eye. I also stopped at … Continue reading 691. Logan, Harrison County (IA04) →

It looks like they’re updating the facade of this old girl.  It doesn’t look that great to begin with, so it can only get better, but I’m certainly not going to rag on it.  Any time one of these gets a little TLC, it's a good thing.  Perhaps one day, I’ll pass back through here, … Continue reading 690. Council Bluffs, Pottawattamie County (IA03) →

Omaha is the birthplace of a surprising number of notable folks, among them those I adore (Elliott Smith, Gabrielle Union, Paul Williams), those to whom I’m indifferent (Gerald Ford, Warren Buffett, Fred Astaire), and those who occupy space somewhere in between (Malcolm X, Swoozie Kurtz, Connor Oberst, Marlon Brando).  It is also the home of … Continue reading 689. Omaha, Douglas County (NE13) →

Ummm…  Yeah.  NO.I was confused at first if this was the place, but the District Court is on the back side of the building, the flagpole is here, and it shares a parking lot with a lot of the other county service locations, so this must be the place.  Believe me when I tell you … Continue reading 688. Papillion, Sarpy County (NE12) →

Once again, Lewis Cass gets an accolade. On the one hand, he was a big advocate of popular sovereignty, making it possible that he was anti-slavery (though if he held such a belief, he certainly didn't express it openly). On the other hand, he enthusiastically helped Andrew Jackson with Indian removal. On a scale from … Continue reading 687. Plattsmouth, Cass County (NE11) →

Getting here was a complete and total pain. I managed to get stuck behind the same two trucks and a car for about 150 miles. I just could not get around or away from them until I was almost in town. And how were my travails repaid? With a new courthouse? I mean, I guess … Continue reading 686. Glenwood, Mills County (IA02) →