Moorhead's First County Courthouse

Moorhead has had an interesting evolution of courthouses. As the county seat, the courthouse needed to serve the wider needs of Clay County. Its first incarnation was built at the intersection of 5th Street and 1st Avenue North in 1872. The building was sold in 1878. Today the site of the first courthouse is located where the Moorhead Center Mall sits. The site was marked by a fountain until 2013, when a carpeted lounge was put in its place.

For more information on the courthouse history of Moorhead, visit sites 30, 34, and 35.

Sources:

1. “History of Clay County.” 2010. Accessed October 15, 2016. http://claycountymn.gov/260/History-of-Clay-County
2. Peihl, Mark. “County Seat Fight a Bitter Battle.” Clay County Historical Society Newsletter, 2001.

Photo Credits:

1. A Century Together: A History of Fargo, North Dakota and Moorhead, Minnesota. Fargo, North Dakota: The Fargo-Moorhead Centennial Cooperation, 1975. 160.