It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 as a part of the County Courthouses in Iowa Thematic Resource.

Construction on the present courthouse was begun that same year and completed in 1883.

The historic portion of the courthouse was built in the Italianate style, and it follows an irregular plan.

The tall slender windows are capped with simple ornamental stone hoods.

[5] The high pitched hip roof that caps the building and that of the spire on the tower suggests the Gothic Revival style.