The Hunterdon County Courthouse is an historic site located in Flemington, the county seat of

Hunterdon County Hunterdon County is a county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population was 128,947, making it the state's 18th-most populous county,New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, that is best known as the site of the 1935 "

Trial of the Century __NOTOC__ Trial of the century is an idiomatic phrase used to describe certain well-known court cases, especially of the 19th, 20th and 21st century. It is often used popularly as a rhetorical device to attach importance to a trial and as such i ...

" of Bruno Hauptmann and his conviction and sentence of death for his role in the

Lindbergh kidnapping On March 1, 1932, Charles Augustus Lindbergh Jr. (born June 22, 1930), the 20-month-old son of aviators Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh, was abducted from his crib in the upper floor of the Lindberghs' home, Highfields (Amwell and Ho ...

.Hunterdon County Courthouse

New Jersey Historic Trust The New Jersey Historic Trust was created by the State of New Jersey in 1967 to preserve New Jersey's historic resources. The Historic Trust's executive director is Dorothy P. Guzzo. Funding programs available through the New Jersey Historic Tru ...

. Accessed February 25, 2022.

Construction

While Hunterdon County was established in 1714, the first courthouse in the county was built in 1791, replacing a facility that existed in Trenton, in Mercer County. This first courthouse lasted until it was destroyed by fire in 1828, with arson the suspected cause.Hunterdon County History
, Hunterdon County, New Jersey. Accessed February 25, 2022. The current courthouse was built in 1828 on the site of the original facility, with stone from the first building used to construct the jail behind the courthouse. The jail was used until 1985 when it was replaced by a new county jail; the courthouse remained in use until 1996 when a new justice center was opened.

"Trial of the Century"

The trial of Hauptmann attracted sightseers to the courthouse and the attached jail. In October 1934, ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' reported that the courthouse was drawing hundreds of curious spectators. Edward J. Reilly was hired by the ''

Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print ...

'' to serve as Hauptmann's attorney. Two other lawyers, Lloyd Fisher and Frederick Pope, were co-counselors.

David T. Wilentz David Theodore Wilentz (December 21, 1894 – July 6, 1988) was the Attorney General of New Jersey from 1934 to 1944. In 1935 he successfully prosecuted Bruno Hauptmann in the Lindbergh kidnapping trial. He was the father of Robert Wilentz, Ch ...

New Jersey Attorney General The attorney general of New Jersey is a member of the executive cabinet of the state and oversees the New Jersey Department of Law and Public Safety, Department of Law and Public Safety. The office is appointed by the governor of New Jersey, confir ...

, led the prosecution. In addition to Hauptmann's possession of the ransom money, the State introduced evidence showing a strong similarity between Hauptmann's handwriting and the handwriting on the ransom notes. The State also introduced photographic evidence demonstrating that the wood from the ladder left at the crime scene matched a plank from the floor of Hauptmann's attic. Condon and

Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...

both testified that Hauptmann was "John". Another witness, Amandus Hockmuth, testified that he saw Hauptmann near the scene of the crime. Hauptmann was ultimately convicted of the crimes and sentenced to death. His appeals were rejected, though New Jersey Governor

Harold G. Hoffman Harold Giles Hoffman (February 7, 1896 – June 4, 1954) was an American politician of the Republican Party who served as the 41st governor of New Jersey from 1935 to 1938. He also served two terms representing in the United States House of Re ...

granted a temporary reprieve of Hauptmann's execution and made the politically unpopular move of having the New Jersey Board of Pardons review the case, though the Board found no reason to overturn the verdict. He was electrocuted on April 3, 1936, just over four years after the kidnapping.

Modern times

A matching grant of more than $500,000 for restoration, rehabilitation and stabilization of the site was received from the

in 1997, part of $11.5 million granted to 30 historic sites across the state, and the only site selected in Hunterdon County. It is part of the Flemington Historic District. Artifacts from the courthouse remain on display, including the witness chair from the Lindbergh Kidnapping trial and hand-carved jury chairs The courthouse has been used for reenactments of the 1935 trial, including a 1994 presentation of the play ''Lindbergh and Hauptmann: The Trial of the Century''.Klein, Alvin
"2 Plays on Lindbergh Kidnapping "
''

'', July 31, 1994. Accessed February 25, 2022.

References

{{NRHP in Hunterdon County, New Jersey Buildings and structures in Hunterdon County, New Jersey County courthouses in New Jersey Flemington, New Jersey Historic district contributing properties in New Jersey Historic district contributing properties in Hunterdon County, New Jersey

Construction

"Trial of the Century"

Modern times

See also

References