Old Pepin County Courthouse

Built in 1873-74 for $7,000, this building served as the center of Pepin County government for 105 years and is Wisconsin's last remaining wood-frame courthouse. Its temple-front Greek Revival architecture represents strong democratic ideals of government. Construction of the courthouse settled a turbulent controversy over the selection of the county seat. The courthouse lawn was also the scene of a lynching that gained widespread attention when, on November 19, 1881, an angry mob seized Ed Maxwell, who had been accused of killing two lawmen, and dragged him, still in handcuffs and leg irons and with a noose around his neck, down the steps to a tree in the yard where he was hanged.

Durand, Wisconsin · United States