Elko County Sesquicentennial 1869-2019

Elko County Sesquicentennial 1869-2019

Elko County was established in March 1869. The seat of the county required a courthouse, and so contractor W.P. Monroe’s proposal was accepted at a bid of $17,744. The building was finished in 1870, complete with jail cells in the basement and indoor toilets. It was suggested by the Grand Jury that an outhouse be built out back because the indoor toilets were “a great nuisance and in short will render the lower story of the courthouse unfit for occupancy.” The contractor also ran into problems with the commissioners because they refused to pay a $240 bill for all of the door locks. In his anger, Monroe distributed spare keys around town and the commissioners were forced to pay $600 to replace the locks. The original Elko County Courthouse stood in the same location as our current courthouse, which was completed in 1911 at a cost of $150,000.

Northeastern Nevada Museum Archive Photo 1841-1661-9:
Elko County Courthouse 1908. Jail house to the left.

Northeastern Nevada Museum Archive Photo 1841-696:
Construction of the current Elko County Courthouse c. 1910-1911.