Illinois State University in Normal in McLean County, Illinois — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Capital Stone from the Third McLean County Courthouse

1868-1900

— Alfred Piquenard, architect —

Capital Stone from the Third McLean County Courthouse Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, June 21, 2025

1. Capital Stone from the Third McLean County Courthouse Marker

Inscription. This capital stone, carved in the Corinthian order, capped a fluted column on the courthouse building. Designed in the Italian Renaissance style, this domed building burnt in the Great Fire of June 1900, which destroyed 5 square blocks in downtown Bloomington. After the demolition of the ruined courthouse, pieces of the building were placed across the community, as a kind of tribute to past grandeur.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Architecture • Disasters. A significant historical year for this entry is 1900.

Location. 40° 30.542′ N, 88° 59.457′ W. Marker is in Normal, Illinois, in McLean County. It is in Illinois State University. It can be reached from College Avenue, on the right when traveling east. The marker is along a pathway on the northern side of the main quad of Illinois State University. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Normal IL 61761, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Central Illinois.

It is also in the American Midwest

and in the Corn Belt.

Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture

and also the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Veterans Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); Old Main Bell (within shouting distance of this marker); Illinois State University Veterans Memorial (within shouting distance of this marker); World War I Memorial Stone (within shouting distance of this marker); William Saunders

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(about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); The Illinois State Normal University (about 300 feet away); Old Main (about 300 feet away); Jesse W. Fell (about 400 feet away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Normal.

Regarding Capital Stone from the Third McLean County Courthouse. Just after midnight on June 19, 1900, a fire in the Model Laundry building in downtown Bloomington (about 2 miles south of this memorial) spread to neighboring buildings. By the time the fire was finally contained in the late morning, 45 buildings were destroyed, one person died and six people were injured.

According to the McLean County Museum of History, other capitals (the tops of the columns) from the courthouse have been on display across Bloomington, although those appear to have been removed from the locations they listed over the past decade, based on recent Google Street View images.

Also see . . .
1. McLean County Museum of History: Bloomington Fire Collection. (Submitted on June 23, 2025, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)
2. Ancestry.com: The Bloomington Fire. Archival photos demonstrate the damage caused by the Bloomington Fire of 1900.

Excerpt:
Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, June 21, 2025

2. Capital Stone
"The estimated damage was around $2 million, while the total insurance held by the buildings was less than $900,000."

(Submitted on June 23, 2025, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.)

Capital Stone in ISU's main quad image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sean P. Flynn, June 21, 2025

3. Capital Stone in ISU's main quad

McLean County's third courthouse after the fire of 1900 image. Click for full size.

B.C. Read; courtesy of Bloomington-Normal Local History Resources (Illinois Wesleyan University), June 19, 1900

4. McLean County's third courthouse after the fire of 1900

Damage to the courthouse (and particularly its roof) is visible in this photo, apparently taken on the day of the Bloomington Fire of 1900. The courthouse was one of 45 buildings destroyed in the conflagration.

Credits. This page was last revised on June 23, 2025. It was originally submitted on June 23, 2025, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois. This page has been viewed 136 times since then and 13 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on June 23, 2025, by Sean P. Flynn of Oak Park, Illinois.