{"nrhp_refnum":"81000526","name":"Armstrong County Courthouse and Jail","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"E. Market St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Kittanning","county":"Armstrong County","state":"PA","lat":40.81634505000005,"lon":-79.51633609599997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1981-11-01","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story Greek Revival county courthouse with an attached Gothic Revival stone jail, both located at the terminus of Market Street in Kittanning, Armstrong County, Pennsylvania. The courthouse was built in 1858-60 and the jail in 1870-73.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the courthouse and jail have been the center of county governmental and judicial operations since 1858, with no other existing structures holding as great a position of importance in the county. The courthouse is described as the best and primary example of monumental Greek Revival style in the county, and the jail as one of the strongest and most substantial buildings in the United States when completed.","narrative":"Set at the head of Market Street overlooking Kittanning, the Armstrong County Courthouse was built by Hulings and Dickey in 1858-60 on the site of a courthouse destroyed by fire in March 1858. Its brick and stone two-story main block has a four-column Corinthian portico on the west front, a hipped roof topped by a cupola and bell, and a frescoed courtroom on the second floor. Connected to it by a covered arched walkway 13 feet long is the jail, built by the Harrison Brothers of Pittsburgh between 1870 and 1873 at a cost of $252,000. Its stone walls, battlements and central tower give it a castle-like appearance, and it was regarded at completion as among the most secure buildings in the country. The two buildings have been the seat of county government and justice since 1858. Their combined design and hillside setting make them among the most important public structures in Armstrong County.","period_of_significance":"1858-1899","architect_builder":"Hulings and Dickey (builder/architect of the courthouse); Harrison Brothers of Pittsburgh (jail contractors)","architectural_style":"Greek Revival; Gothic Revival (jail)","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Enlarged and remodeled 1951-1953, with a three-story rear addition to the courthouse and jail improvements; the jail exterior was not altered by those improvements.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-haiku-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.1-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 17:11:33.56184-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_PA/81000526.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/81000526/95ea293def-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/81000526/95ea293def-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 2.0","author":"Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kittanning,_Pennsylvania_(8482749220).jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Doug Kerr from Albany, NY, United States</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 2.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Kittanning,_Pennsylvania_(8482749220).jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71996036","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Armstrong_County_Courthouse_and_Jail","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4793926"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/pennsylvania/armstrong-county/armstrong-county-courthouse-and-jail-81000526/"}