Welcome to Brown County and the City of Mount Sterling, the county seat. Brown County is part of the German-settled area of western Central Illinois and the Missouri Rhineland centered on the St. Louis metropolitan area. The population of this rural county was 6,244 at the 2020 census.
The series will focus on the Mount Sterling Commercial Historic District listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The district includes four entire city blocks and parts of four others. In total, there are 38 buildings in the district, of which 35 are contributing buildings. Nearly all of the buildings in the district are Italianate commercial buildings; the only exceptions are a Classical Revival bank building and the courthouse, which incorporates both Italianate and Classical Revival elements. The district was added to the NRHP in 1987.
In keeping with tradition when visiting county seats, I'll begin our tour with the county courthouse. Completed in 1868 and rebuilt around 1940, the Brown County Courthouse shown above is the second courthouse in the county's history.
The 1868 building was a two-story, gable-roofed structure with a pedimented central portico, five openings on each floor of the facade (a door and four large windows on the first floor, and five pairs of narrow arch windows on the second), and a tall cupola at the center of the roof. The courthouse lasted in this form until 1939, when fire largely destroyed the building.
But instead of giving up on the remains and constructing a new courthouse, the county government chose to undertake a three-year rebuilding process. The body of the building is largely largely the same as before, but officials chose not to rebuild the cupola, and the courthouse was given a hip roof.
The rebuilt courthouse has continued in use into the 21st century, and remains a prominent building in the community. It lies at the northern end of the downtown area, separating commercial areas from residential neighborhoods.
The population of Mount Sterling at the 2020 census was 2,006.
Sources:
National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form: Mount Sterling Commercial Historic District; Mount Sterling, Illinois (Wikipedia); Mount Sterling Commercial Historic District (Wikipedia), Brown County, Illinois (Wikipedia)
Tags: Mount Sterling Seat Brown County West Central Illinois IL Rural Small Town Civic Public National Register of Historic Places Mount Sterling Commercial Historic District Reference # 87000724 Historic Courthouse Brown County Courthouse Contributing Architecture Architectural Style Italianate Classical Revival Season Autumn Fall Canon EOS 5D Mark IV 5DM4
This view looks toward the west from above the intersection of W. Main St. and Capitol Ave. (foreground), the heart of the Mount Sterling Commercial Historic District. The historic district was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987, and includes four entire city blocks and parts of four others.
Mount Sterling is the seat of Brown County, part of the German-settled area of western Central Illinois and the Missouri Rhineland centered on the St. Louis metropolitan area. The city had a population of 2,006 at the 2020 census.efault
Tags: Mount Sterling Seat Brown County West Central Illinois IL Rural Small Town Water Tower W. Main Street S. Captiol Ave. National Register of Historic Places Mount Sterling Commercial Historic District Reference # 87000724 Season Autumn Fall Drone DJI Mini 4 Pro