Kanawha County Courthouse is a historic

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 ...

located at

Charleston, West Virginia Charleston is the capital and List of cities in West Virginia, most populous city of West Virginia. Located at the confluence of the Elk River (West Virginia), Elk and Kanawha River, Kanawha rivers, the city had a population of 48,864 at the 20 ...

. It is located across from the

Charleston City Hall Charleston City Hall is a historic city hall located at Charleston, West Virginia. It was constructed in 1921 in the Neoclassical style. It is located opposite the Kanawha County Courthouse, at the center of downtown Charleston. The major, or entr ...

, and is a block-long structure constructed in 1892 of rock-face masonry. It is noteworthy for its picturesque massing and precise

Richardsonian Romanesque Richardsonian Romanesque is a style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after the American architect Henry Hobson Richardson (1838–1886). The revival style incorporates 11th and 12th century southern French, Spanish, and Italian Romanesque ...

design. Additions were made to the original building in 1917 and 1924. The twin-towered Virginia Street elevation is the glory of the Kanawha County Courthouse. Roofs of each tower are pyramidal with chamfered corners. The belfry openings are arched and flanked with smooth grey

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

masonry colonnettes. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1978.

References

Buildings and structures in Charleston, West Virginia County courthouses in West Virginia Courthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia Government buildings completed in 1892 H. Rus Warne buildings National Register of Historic Places in Charleston, West Virginia Renaissance Revival architecture in West Virginia Richardsonian Romanesque architecture in West Virginia {{KanawhaCountyWV-NRHP-stub