History of Plumas Superior Court
Plumas Superior Court is one of the fifty-eight subdivisions of the California trial courts and sits at the Plumas County seat of government in the Quincy.
See the Plumas Past: Courthouses of Plumas County article by Lindsay Morton with The Plumas Sun for a further look into the history of the Courthouses of Plumas County.
History
Plumas County was formed in 1854 out of the eastern portion of Butte County. H.J. Bradley, a rancher who named Quincy after his namesake hometown in Illinois, allowed the county to use a crude shake roof log building of his American Ranch as the county's first courthouse.
In 1857, Bradley and two other citizens donated land for a public square and a nicer courthouse. Over the next couple years funds were raised and a new brick and wood Greek Revival courthouse was completed on May 2, 1859.
A fence was erected around the courthouse in 1864, at a cost of $700, and the grounds were landscaped with native trees and shrubbery.
In 1871, during repair of the building, F.B. Whiting, the county clerk, placed in the base of one of the supporting pillars, a metal box which was to become a link between the courthouse and its 1921 replacement. The box held a Great Register of the county and newspapers of the day. The Hall of Records was added to the square in 1895. The first jail, a small log structure, had been built in 1855 and was in use until construction of the brick jail in 1863.
Plumas County Courthouse in Snow (ca. 1889)
Pack Train in front of Plumas Courthouse (ca. 1900)
Plumas County Courthouse, Hall or Records and Jail Before Construction Began on the New Courthouse (ca. 1919)
In September of 1919, Plumas County citizens gathered to formally dedicate and lay the cornerstone of the new courthouse. "Attorney General U.S. Webb delivered the oration of the day, eulogizing the memory of those who had, by their industry, thirst and perseverance, made possible the erection of a modern county building and calling upon the sons of those men who had gone to uphold the traditions of their fathers and to continue the work of improvement, upbuilding and advancement in the county."
The new courthouse was being built as a four-story reinforced concrete building finished in stucco. It would soon be inhabited with a library, museum, jail and courts.
Finished in 1921, the interior includes blue and gray marble from quarries in Tuolumne County for the stairways and floors. Pink Tennessee marble was used as accent along with oak for wainscotting, doors and window casings.
The Beaux Arts style courthouse was designed by George Sellon. Dedication day was celebrated on September 9, 1921; The old courthouse can be seen to the left and the Hall or Records to the right.
Plumas County Courthouse and the Hotel Quincy (1935)
Plumas County Courthouse (1946)
Plumas County Courthouse Today | © The Plumas Sun