The United States Bankruptcy Courthouse, Tallahassee, Florida, 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 ...

of the

United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida The United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida (in case citations, N.D. Fla.) is a federal court in the Eleventh Circuit (except for patent claims and claims against the U.S. government under the Tucker Act, which are appea ...

.Federal Judicial Center Historic Federal Courthouses page on the United States Courthouse in Tallahassee, Florida

Building history

During the 1890s, the federal government funded construction of federal courthouses and post offices throughout the country. Supervising Architects of the Treasury

Willoughby J. Edbrooke Willoughby James Edbrooke (1843–1896) was an American architect and a bureaucrat who remained faithful to a Richardsonian Romanesque style into the era of Beaux-Arts architecture in the United States, supported by commissions from conservative ...

and

Jeremiah O'Rourke Jeremiah O'Rourke, FAIA, (1833 – 1915), was an Irish-American architect known primarily for his designs of Roman Catholic churches and institutions and Federal post offices. He was a founder of the Newark-based architectural firms of Jeremiah ...

prepared the architectural plans for Tallahassee's 1895 courthouse and post office building. Built on Park Avenue across the street from the Leon County Courthouse, it was demolished in 1964. The site of the current U.S. Courthouse was occupied by a county courthouse between 1838 and 1879. The Leon Hotel stood here from 1883 until it burned in 1925. During the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

, a new post office and federal building was constructed on the site by the

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects, i ...

(WPA). Established in 1935, the WPA was a nationwide employment program responsible for public works. Architect

Eric Kebbon Eric Kebbon (June 6, 1890–April 18, 1964) was an American architect. Eric Kebbon's full name was Harold Eric Kebbon. He was born in Brooklyn, N.Y. on June 6, 1890 to Gustave Adolph Kebbon, born in Sweden, and Datie Louise Eldridge. He died ...

(1890-1964) designed Tallahassee's courthouse and the Beers Construction Company of

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

was the general contractor. Based in New York, Kebbon designed more than 100 public schools, and is noted for his work on the

1939 New York World's Fair The 1939–40 New York World's Fair was a world's fair held at Flushing Meadows–Corona Park in Queens, New York, United States. It was the second-most expensive American world's fair of all time, exceeded only by St. Louis's Louisiana Purchas ...

Food Building with several other renowned architects, including Morris Ketchum Jr. and

Edward Durrell Stone Edward Durell Stone (March 9, 1902 – August 6, 1978) was an American architect known for the formal, highly decorative buildings he designed in the 1950s and 1960s. His works include the Museum of Modern Art, in New York City, the Museo de A ...

. The courthouse's main lobby is decorated with eight murals illustrating scenes from Florida's history. The murals were funded by the Treasury Department's Section of Painting and Sculpture, a Depression-era program intended to employ artists. Hungarian-born American Edward "Buk" Ulreich (1889-1966) won a competition to paint the murals, which he completed in 1939. The building originally housed the

, and served it as Tallahassee's main post office until the early 1970s. In 1979, the courthouse was listed in 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 ...

as part of the Park Avenue Historic District. The courthouse is now occupied by the

U.S. Bankruptcy Court United States bankruptcy courts are courts created under Article I of the United States Constitution. The current system of bankruptcy courts was created by the United States Congress in 1978, effective April 1, 1984. United States bankruptcy c ...

of the Northern District of Florida.

Architecture

Built in 1935–1936 at a cost of $318,000, the U.S. Court-house features an understated combination of the Beaux Arts and Neoclassical styles. It was designed by Eric Kebbon, who also designed the 1937 C.F. Haynsworth Federal Building in

Greenville, South Carolina Greenville (; locally ) is a city in and the seat of Greenville County, South Carolina, United States. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 census, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. Greenville is located approximately halfway be ...

. With funds limited during the Great Depression, the courthouse lacks the exuberant detailing typical of many Beaux Arts buildings. The Beaux Arts style is known for its classically inspired details, variety of stone finishes, and projecting pavilions with colossal

column A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member. ...

s and

pediment Pediments are gables, usually of a triangular shape. Pediments are placed above the horizontal structure of the lintel, or entablature, if supported by columns. Pediments can contain an overdoor and are usually topped by hood moulds. A pedimen ...

entablature An entablature (; nativization of Italian , from "in" and "table") is the superstructure of moldings and bands which lies horizontally above columns, resting on their capitals. Entablatures are major elements of classical architecture, and ...

on top. Characteristics of the Neoclassical style include symmetry, smooth stone surfaces, and colonnades. The courthouse has a

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained (phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies undergro ...

foundation and the walls consist of

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 ...

blocks. The overall massing and exterior design on all four elevations is simple, symmetrical, and classically inspired. The round-arched windows feature limestone

keystones A keystone (or capstone) is the wedge-shaped stone at the apex of a masonry arch or typically round-shaped one at the apex of a vault. In both cases it is the final piece placed during construction and locks all the stones into position, allo ...

on the first story, while the second-story windows have heavy limestone frames culminating in keystones. Limestone belt courses extend along the first story and between the first and second stories. A cornice with an unadorned frieze and dentil molding runs below the roof's edge. Topping the hipped roof is a circular limestone

cupola In architecture, a cupola () is a relatively small, most often dome-like, tall structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome. The word derives, via Italian, from ...

with Tuscan columns and copper roof with a brass finial. The principal embellishment is a central temple-front pavilion on the south facade, highlighted by a coursed limestone base pierced with arches and an upper-level portico with an arcade. On the first story, the central arch frames the double door entry. The second story includes Tuscan columns and a limestone balustrade. Above the columns, the pediment features a simple frieze with dentil-block molding and an oculus (round) window with limestone surround. The former postal lobby and main staircase are located at the south (main) entry. Original finishes include marble flooring and wainscoting, marble pilasters along the south wall, decorative crown molding, bronze ornaments and grills, and marble surrounds with keystones accenting the south wall's doors and windows. Marble writing tables and a bulletin board with marble surround are at the lobby's south wall. Below the north wall's crown molding are Ulreich's murals, depicting important events in Florida's history. The west and north walls have original brass six-panel doors with classically detailed surrounds. The lobby's original brass light fixtures with glass globes are typical of 1930s post offices. Faced with marble, the original curved staircase is at the lobby's southwest corner. Following the stairs' curve, the staircase railing has iron balusters with a wood cap and decorative bronze newels at each level. The two-story main courtroom is on the second floor. The courtroom lobby retains historic terrazzo floors, marble baseboards, wooden chair rails, and paneled doors. The courtroom itself features wood wainscoting and fluted Ionic pilasters supporting a massive wood entablature with a dentil cornice, all of painted white pine. Arched windows on the south wall have wood trim with a keystone and rosette corner blocks. Original furnishings include the judge's bench, jury box, court rail, and spectators' benches. In 2000, an annex was completed near the historic building to provide space for the U.S. District Court. In 2003–2004, the courthouse was subject to a $4 million renovation that included window and facade restoration, preservation of key areas such as judges' office suites, and remodeling of remaining areas for bankruptcy court, clerk, and trustee and

U.S. Marshals The United States Marshals Service (USMS) is a federal law enforcement agency in the United States. The USMS is a bureau within the U.S. Department of Justice, operating under the direction of the Attorney General, but serves as the enforceme ...

use. Akin & Associates Architects, Inc. provided architectural design services, while Peter R. Brown Construction, Inc. was the general contractor. In 2005, the Tallahassee Trust for Historic Preservation recognized the project with an outstanding achievement award.

History

* 1935-1936: Construction of the U.S. Courthouse * 1939: Completion of lobby murals by artist Eduard Buk Ulreich * 1979: Listed in the National Register as a contributing building to the Park Avenue Historic District * 2003-2004: Renovation of the U.S. Courthouse building

Building facts

* Location: 110 East Park Avenue * Architect: Eric Kebbon * Construction Dates: 1935-1936 * Architectural Style: Beaux Arts Classicism * Landmark Status: Listed in the

as a contributing building to the Park Avenue Historic District * Primary Materials: Limestone and granite * Prominent Features: Limestone temple-front pavilion; Lobby murals depicting history of Florida; Curved marble staircase

References

Attribution

* {{GSA building, 027 Federal courthouses in the United States Courthouses in Florida Government buildings completed in 1936 Beaux-Arts architecture in Florida National Register of Historic Places in Tallahassee, Florida 1936 establishments in Florida Historic district contributing properties in Florida