As you can see the courthouse was illuminated enough to take a decent photograph. Lovely, and probably WPA era, though I have misattributed those so many times that you shouldn’t take my word for that. The big bright light in the center seemed like it would be an annoyance, but it didn’t work out too … Continue reading 586. Wellington, Sumner County (KS050) →

To come to a close on this courthouse after so many lovely specimens feels both a little sad and somewhat anticlimactic. It's a testament to all that's bad about 70's architecture. It's like a medical office or maybe an old dorm. Are those bars on the windows? Or are they serving another function I'm just … Continue reading 585. Franklin, St. Mary Parish (LA64) →

Welcome to another office building from the 80's! Nothing particularly distinctive about it. I've worked in a few buildings like it. Some courthouses are just not exciting and the workings of the county run through here. There's just no way around it. The cache was a white plastic box in a bush. I felt pretty … Continue reading 584. Convent, St. James Parish (LA63) →

Ladies and gentlemen (or however you identify—I don't mean to be gender assumptive), welcome to the Big Easy! It turns out that New Orleans is a combined city/parish government, just like Denver, so the center of power would be City Hall. To be honest, I spent a lot of time trying to figure out where … Continue reading 583. New Orleans, Orleans Parish (LA62) →

I like it! I totally dig that solidly constructed post WPA slightly art deco-ish type thing. Times like this I wish I had a better grounding in architecture to be able to give you a better description of it, but that hardly matters. What matters is that its solidity is a proud symbol that gives … Continue reading 582. Chalmette, St. Bernard Parish (LA61) →

There was some question as to whether I should go to the governmental center or the courthouse in the parish, so I covered my bases by going to both since the center was on my way down. Oddly enough, the address for the center led to a defunct animal shelter. There was a nearby governmental … Continue reading 581. Pointe à la Hache, Plaquemines Parish (LA60) →

Ugh…  Gretna doesn’t seem to have a central courthouse.  The Parish Clerk and Parish President (yes, this parish has a President instead of a Police Jury [and, for those of you who didn’t know this, most parishes have Police Juries instead of judges or commissioners]) work out of this building, utterly uninspired, indistinguishable from any … Continue reading 580. Gretna, Jefferson Parish (LA59) →

The courthouse reminded me quite a bit of Cameron County back in Texas.  White, relatively non-descript, possibly from the 80’s…  It’s a perfectly cromulent building for a perfectly cromulent town.  It’s not really impressive, but it does the job.  Well, at least I wasn’t impressed.  The cache was a large jar in a planter at … Continue reading 579. Hahnville, St. Charles Parish (LA58) →

As you can imagine, my separation of church and state hackles went through the roof the second I saw the statue carrying a cross out front.  Of course, since the place is named for a pretty well known biblical figure, what could I expect?  That said, I was also struck by the theological incongruity of … Continue reading 578. Edgard, Saint John the Baptist Parish (LA57) →

Now look at that courthouse! That is a stunningly gorgeous hunk of stone! I thought I'd make it there during the day, but I'm almost glad I didn't arrive until evening. The illuminated stone made quite the impression on me. How could it not? This is the courthouse of an once more important city that … Continue reading 577. Houma, Terrebonne Parish (LA56) →