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Safford in Graham county, Arizona — The American Mountains (Southwest)
 

Graham County Courthouse

1916

 
 
Graham County Courthouse Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Kirchner, September 19, 2010
1. Graham County Courthouse Marker
Inscription. Since Graham County's formation in 1881 the courthouse had been relocated four times. It had been housed in an adobe structure in Safford, two sites in Solomonville, and the Rig's Building on Main Street when the county seat was returned to Safford. A fifth site was offered by the D.E. Welker estate at what was then I and Tenth Streets. In December 1915, the Board of Supervisors accepted the site and approved plans submitted by Architects Lecher & Kibble of Phoenix. The cost was estimated to be $44,000.

Ludgerding and Eagan were low bidders out of a field of eleven. The contract for $40,400 was awarded on March 10, 1916. Work commenced immediately with the contractors burning 300,000 red brick. This was enough for the interior of the building and some extras to sell to the public. The exterior was medium mottled pressed brick imported from El Paso. The facility was completed in six months and dedicated with much fanfare on Labor Day, September 6, 1916.

The neo-classical building features a symmetrical facade oriented around a central pediment. Its location provides a visual terminus of Safford's principal commercial street. The two-story, flat roofed composition rest on a raised concrete basement that carries the main floor seven feet above grade. Doric columns are flanked by brick piers. The interior included vaults
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The portico is approached by a flight of steps which emphasize the recessed front entry. The south and north sides originally had center bay entries. The south was closed to provide mechanical space and the north has been modified. The west entry was modified in 1978 by demolition of an unadorned two-story ell that housed the jail. Elevator access was added in 1995. Interior renovation was completed at that time. In October 1996 the county offices moved to a new facility and the court system took over the entire space.

The building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
 
Erected by City of Safford.
 
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Government & PoliticsNotable Buildings. A significant historical month for this entry is March 1898.
 
Location. 32° 50.001′ N, 109° 42.988′ W. Marker is in Safford in Graham county, Arizona. Marker is on South 8th Avenue south of U.S. 70, on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 800 West Main Street, Safford AZ 85546, United States of America. Touch for directions.
 
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. Safford City Hall (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); Odd Fellows Home (approx. 0.2 miles away); Mormon Pioneers' Arrival in Salt Lake Valley - Sesquicentennial Plaque
Graham County Courthouse Marker image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Kirchner, September 19, 2010
2. Graham County Courthouse Marker
(approx. 0.2 miles away); Arizona Bank & Trust Company (approx. ¼ mile away); Womans Club of Safford (approx. 0.4 miles away); Spencer W. Kimball Childhood Home (approx. 2.6 miles away); First Home of Eastern Arizona College (approx. 5 miles away); Solomon (approx. 5.1 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Safford.
 
Also see . . .  Graham County History.
By 1881, the community of Safford was thriving. On March 10th of that year, Graham County was created out of Pima and Apache counties... Joseph Knight Rogers was called the father of Graham County because, as a representative from Pima County, he introduced a bill in the state Legislature in 1882 recommending that this area be made separate from Pima and Apache counties and be given the name of Graham... Several changes caused Safford to add new businesses and increase in population: the building of the Gila Valley Globe & Northern Railway through Safford, and the construction of a new county courthouse at the west end of Main Street. (Submitted on March 6, 2017, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida.) 
 
Graham County Courthouse image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Bill Kirchner, September 19, 2010
3. Graham County Courthouse
Graham County Courthouse image. Click for full size.
Photographed By Cosmos Mariner, June 8, 2014
4. Graham County Courthouse
 
 
Credits. This page was last revised on March 6, 2017. It was originally submitted on September 28, 2010, by Bill Kirchner of Tucson, Arizona. This page has been viewed 1,105 times since then and 9 times this year. Last updated on October 1, 2010, by Bill Kirchner of Tucson, Arizona. Photos:   1, 2, 3. submitted on September 28, 2010, by Bill Kirchner of Tucson, Arizona.   4. submitted on March 6, 2017, by Cosmos Mariner of Cape Canaveral, Florida. • Syd Whittle was the editor who published this page.

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Mar. 19, 2024