The Howard T. Markey National Courts Building (formerly the National Courts Building) is a

courthouse A courthouse or court house is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In most other English-spe ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, which houses the United States Court of Federal Claims and the

United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (in case citations, Fed. Cir. or C.A.F.C.) is a United States court of appeals that has special appellate jurisdiction over certain types of specialized cases in the Federal judiciary of ...

. It is located at 717

Madison Place Madison Place is a one-block street located in northwest Washington, D.C., across from the White House. It forms the eastern border of Lafayette Square (the northernmost part of President's Park) between Pennsylvania Avenue and H Street NW. Buil ...

NW, east of Lafayette Square and north of the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

, and borders the

Freedman's Bank Building The Freedman's Bank Building, previously known as the Treasury Annex, is a historic office building located on the corner of Madison Place and Pennsylvania Avenue in Northwest Washington, D.C. in Washington, D.C. It sits on the east side of Laf ...

to the south,

Benjamin Ogle Tayloe House The Benjamin Ogle Tayloe House is a Federal-style house located at 21 Madison Place NW in Washington, D.C., in the United States. The house is on the northeast corner of Madison Place NW and Pennsylvania Avenue NW, directly across the street from ...

at 721 Madison Place NW, the former Cosmos Club building at 725 Madison Place NW, and the Cutts-Madison House at 1520 H Street NW.

History

The original plan for the courthouse and an office building for

staff had called for the historic houses on both sides of Lafayette Square to be razed.

First Lady First lady is an unofficial title usually used for the wife, and occasionally used for the daughter or other female relative, of a non-monarchical A monarchy is a form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state fo ...

Jacqueline Kennedy Jacqueline Lee Kennedy Onassis ( ; July 28, 1929 – May 19, 1994) was an American socialite, writer, photographer, and book editor who served as first lady of the United States from 1961 to 1963, as the wife of President John F. Kennedy. A po ...

, a believer in

historic preservation Historic preservation (US), built heritage preservation or built heritage conservation (UK), is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance. It is a philos ...

, urged

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

John F. Kennedy John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination i ...

to find an alternative solution. Kennedy tapped architect John Carl Warnecke to come up with a plan to preserve the houses. Warnecke and Jacqueline Kennedy envisioned that the courthouse and the New Executive Office Building, a twin structure to be built on the other side of Lafayette Square, would form a backdrop for the historic houses. The two buildings remain distinctive in their own right. The Building Committee included Chief Judge

John Marvin Jones John Marvin Jones (February 26, 1882 – March 4, 1976) was a United States representative from Texas and a Judge of the United States Court of Claims. Education and career Born on February 26, 1882, in Valley View, Cooke County, Texas, Jone ...

, Commissioner

Marion T. Bennett Marion Tinsley Bennett (June 6, 1914 – September 6, 2000) served as a member of the United States Congress, as a judge of the United States Court of Claims and as a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Feder ...

, and Chief Commissioner

Arnold Wilson Cowen Arnold Wilson Cowen (December 20, 1905 – October 28, 2007) was a United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and previously was the chief judge of the United States Court of Claims. Education and ca ...

. The building was dedicated on September 20, 1967. The courthouse was initially built for the United States Court of Customs and Patent Appeals and the

United States Court of Claims The Court of Claims was a federal court that heard claims against the United States government. It was established in 1855, renamed in 1948 to the United States Court of Claims (), and abolished in 1982. Then, its jurisdiction was assumed by the n ...

, so when the two courts were abolished and merged to create the Federal Circuit in 1982, they already had a domicile in common. In 1998, President

Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and agai ...

signed legislation renaming the National Courts Building after

Howard Thomas Markey Howard Thomas Markey (November 10, 1920 – May 3, 2006) was an American jurist who served as the first Chief United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. He is often credited with establishing that c ...

. The re-dedication celebration was held on October 23, 1998, during a special joint session of the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the Court of Federal Claims.''United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit: A History: 1990-2002'' (2004).

: p. 107.

References

{{coord, 38, 53, 58.05, N, 77, 02, 5.6, W, display=title, type:landmark_region:US-DC Courthouses in Washington, D.C. Buildings of the United States government in Washington, D.C. Federal courthouses in the United States United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit United States Court of Federal Claims

History

See also

References