Oregon Historic Sites Database

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Oregon Historic Sites Database

address:1147 State St historic name:Supreme Court & Library Building
Salem, Marion County current/other names:Oregon Supreme Court Building
assoc addresses:1163 State St
block/lot/tax lot:
location descr: twnshp/rng/sect/qtr sect:7S 3W 26
resource type:Building height (stories):3.0 total elig resources:1 total inelig resources:0
elig evaluation: eligible/significant NR Status: Individually Listed
prim constr date:1914 second date: date indiv listed:03/04/2020
primary orig use: Courthouse orig use comments:Industry: Communications Facility
second orig use: Library
primary style: Beaux Arts prim style comments:
secondary style: sec style comments:
primary siding: Terra Cotta: Other/Undefined siding comments:
secondary siding:
plan type: Rectangular Block architect:William C. Knighton
builder:F.A. Erixon
comments/notes:
Designated City of Salem Local Landmark
Not associated with any surveys or groupings.
NR date listed: 03/04/2020
ILS survey date:
RLS survey date:
Gen file date: 10/03/2012
106 Project(s)
SHPO Case Date Agency Effect Eval
12-1321 10/22/2012 no adverse effect
Special Assess Project(s): None
Federal Tax Project(s): None
(Includes expanded description of the building/property, setting, significant landscape features, outbuildings and alterations)
The Oregon Supreme Court Building was constructed in 1914 and designed in the Beaux Arts style by Oregon State Architect William C. Knighton. Home to the Oregon Supreme Court, Oregon Court of Appeals, Oregon Judicial Department, and the Oregon State Law Library, this building is located in the southeast corner of the Salem Capitol Mall, adjacent to the State Capitol building and sharing a block with the Justice Building to the north. The building is surrounded by mature trees and greenspace, extending the park-like appearance of the Capitol Mall. It is a 57,650 square foot, three-story rectilinear building with basement and attic. It is constructed of steel and concrete, clad primarily in white terra cotta with a granite veneer foundation, and topped with a flat roof and parapet. Its Beaux Arts style is clearly expressed by classical detailing such as symmetrical elevations, engaged Ionic columns, a traditional entablature, segmental-arched windows, and a pedimented roof parapet with small arched battlements. The interior boasts original marble floors and wainscot, a bifurcated grand stair, ornate plaster ceilings, mahogany trim, and a stained-glass skylight at the third-floor courtroom designed by Portland's own Povey Brothers . Spared from the devastating capitol fire of 1935, the Oregon Supreme Court Building is the oldest government building in Salem. Little has changed of the exterior and primary interior spaces since its construction. The exterior was restored in 2014 to repair deteriorating terra cotta units. Primary interior spaces retain their original finishes such as marble wainscoting and mahogany trim, and the building continues its original function as a courthouse and law library. The building retains high integrity and serves as an icon for the Judicial branch of government in Oregon and as a rare example of early 20th century architecture in the Salem Capitol Mall.
(Chronological, descriptive history of the property from its construction through at least the historic period - preferably to the present)
The Oregon Supreme Court and Library Building is eligible for the National Register at the state level under Criteria A and C. Under Criterion A in the area of Politics/Government, the building reflects the Supreme Court’s impact on the development of Oregon's provisional government, statehood, and establishment of its capital. It was the first building constructed solely for state Supreme Court matters in Oregon, is the oldest government building to survive in the state's capitol mall in Salem, and still serves as a beacon for Oregon’s government. Under the area of Law, the building physically embodies the culmination of an official legal presence in Oregon and continues to house the Oregon Supreme Court today. Under Criterion C, in the area of Architecture, the Oregon Supreme Court Building is a premier example of Oregon State Architect William Christmas Knighton's body of work. The building is the architect's best example of the Beaux Arts style and is the first documented use of terra cotta in the state outside of Portland.
Title Records Census Records Property Tax Records Local Histories
Sanborn Maps Biographical Sources SHPO Files Interviews
Obituaries Newspapers State Archives Historic Photographs
City Directories Building Permits State Library
Local Library: University Library:Portland State University
Historical Society: Other Respository:
Bibliography:
Armitage, Stephen P. 2016. “History of the Oregon Judicial Department, Part 2: After Statehood.” State of Oregon Law Library Guides, p.2-5, Accessed November 22. . Belshaw, Elizabeth. "State Supreme Court Building," State of Oregon Inventory of Historic Properties, 1979. “Bid For Remodeling Statehouse About Due,” Daily Capital Journal, February 9, 1912, p.6. Blumenson, John J.-G. Identifying American Architecture, New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1981, p. 66 Bosker, Gideon And Lena Lencek. Frozen Music: A History of Portland Architecture. Portland, Oregon: Western Imprints, the Press of the Oregon Historical Society, 1985, p. 39. Brown, Joseph Henry, Brown’s Political History of Oregon: Provisional Government, vol. I, Portland: Wiley B. Allen, 1892, p 83, accessed October 9, 2018 via GoogleBooks,