{"nrhp_refnum":"76001454","name":"First Hancock County Courthouse","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"819 Park St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Findlay","county":"Hancock County","state":"OH","lat":41.032370257000025,"lon":-83.64366031099996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1976-03-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story frame former county courthouse, built 1831-1833 and now at 819 Park Street in Findlay, Hancock County, Ohio. It was moved to this site in 1913 and is described as believed to be the oldest building in Findlay.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the building is significant as the believed oldest building in Findlay and for the many public and private uses it has served. It also retains its original appearance as described in the 1831 county commissioners' specifications, despite being moved. Its plain, functional design is set off by an eloquent entranceway.","narrative":"Hancock County's first courthouse is a two-story frame building now standing at 819 Park Street in Findlay. The county commissioners set its specifications in 1831, and a bid of $700 from William Taylor, Frederick Henderson and Jonathan Parker was accepted in 1832. It was finished in 1833 and used as a courthouse, school and church until 1840. It was then sold and became the American House Hotel, later the Carr House. Over the years it served as a dentist's office, a drug store and other shops, and as a residence and duplex. It was moved in 1862 and again in 1913, after being condemned by the fire marshal and after an unsuccessful effort to make it a museum. The building is believed to be the oldest in Findlay and keeps its original front door frame, window placement, walnut stairway and a notable entranceway with transom and sidelights. A local preservation guild bought it in 1973.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"William Taylor, Frederick Henderson, Jonathan Parker","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Owned by the Historic Preservation Guild of Hancock County, which is preserving it; the form checks unoccupied and work in progress, with plans for museum and public meeting house use.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:10.381013-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/76001454.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001454/58c717f594-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76001454/58c717f594-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"User:Pepsi2786","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_Hancock_County_Courthouse,_Findlay.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">User:Pepsi2786</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_Hancock_County_Courthouse,_Findlay.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71989289","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Hancock_County_Courthouse","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5453068"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/hancock-county/first-hancock-county-courthouse-76001454/"}