Shelby County's original seat of government was established in 1818 at Shelbyville (Pelham) and moved to Columbiana in 1826. The first courthouse on this site was a small wooden building, replaced in 1854 by a two-story brick structure that forms the central portion of the present building. Later major alterations added front and rear extensions, and the renovated structure was designed in the classical Jefferson style. It continued to serve as the seat of county government until 1908, when a new courthouse was completed two blocks north.