{"nrhp_refnum":"72001448","name":"McDonough County Courthouse","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Public Sq.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Macomb","county":"McDonough County","state":"IL","lat":40.459202865000066,"lon":-90.66624478699998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1972-10-30","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A county courthouse on the Public Square in Macomb, McDonough County, Illinois, completed in 1871 in the Second Empire style and designed by architect Elijah E. Myers.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the building is an outstanding early courthouse design in the prairie states and a strong example of Second Empire Revival style. Its value lies in its exuberant embellishment, monumental interior spaces, and strong composition and setting on a square that had held a log cabin courthouse 35 years earlier. It also notes an early use of wrought iron beams and corrugated metal arches in the floors.","narrative":"Standing at the center of the public square in Macomb, the McDonough County Courthouse was completed in 1871 to designs by Elijah E. Myers. Originally it had a mansard roof with colored slate, cast-iron cresting, dormer windows and ornate chimneys. These were removed in 1889 and replaced with a hip roof with brick gables. The lower walls are brick with limestone quoins, and the interior has marble and slate tile floors carried on wrought iron beams and corrugated metal arches, an early use of that system, with cast-iron stairs and landings. Myers later moved to Detroit and built a large practice that included state capitols. The courthouse was recognized as a strong example of the short-lived Second Empire style, valued for its elaborate ornament, grand interior spaces and its setting where a log courthouse once stood on open prairie. At the time of listing, the county was restoring the original roof and exterior.","period_of_significance":"1869-1871","architect_builder":"Elijah E. Myers, architect","architectural_style":"Second Empire (Second Empire Revival)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied and in government use, in good condition but altered; a phased renovation to restore the original 1871 exterior was underway in 1972.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:35.889752-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/12/8936/28893612/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/72001448.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/72001448/1ee7aac113-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/72001448/1ee7aac113-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.5","author":"Robert Lawton","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:McDonough_County_Courthouse.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Robert Lawton</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.5</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:McDonough_County_Courthouse.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28893612","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/McDonough_County_Courthouse","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6800978"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/mcdonough-county/mcdonough-county-courthouse-72001448/"}