On July 1, 1883, the county seat of Esmeralda County moved from Aurora to Hawthorne. A court house was needed, so a contract to build it for $29125 was awarded, and construction began on August 16, 1883. Corruption and collusion between the contractor George W. Babcock and political officials were revealed by a grand jury. Despite the wrongdoing, the building opened in February 1884 and continued as a county entity until May 1907, when the county seat moved to Goldfield. On February 11, 1911, Esmeralda County was split and Mineral County was created. The building again became the center of county business until 1973, when a modern facility replaced it.