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In 1891, the Unites States Government purchased the southeast corner lot on Phillips Avenue and 12th Street for $8,000 for the construction of a government building. While everyone agreed that the fledgling city of Sioux Falls needed such a building, the site selected came about after a bitter fight among competing businessmen.
A group of men led by two of the very earliest settlers of Sioux Falls, Wilmot W. Brookings and John McClellan, wanted the building located on the "north end" of Phillips Avenue. They all had economic interests in that area and wanted to enhance the value of their property. A second group, led by South Dakota Senator R.F. Pettigrew, was interested in developing their property at the "south end" of Phillips Avenue. Each group offered incentives to the federal government.
Senator Pettigrew introduced a bill in Congress to provide funds for the project. While waiting for the outcome, he and his syndicate improved South Phillips Avenue and gathered signatures from people who favored their site. Congress passed the bill, and after due consideration, the Secretary of Treasury chose Phillips Avenue and 12th Street for the new public building. This aroused a protest from the "north end" crowd, and the site location
was again debated in Washington, D.C. However, the Secretary's decision prevailed, and construction on this site began in 1892.
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(side 2)
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Pettigrew was determined that the building be constructed of Sioux quartzite in support of the local quarry industry. Two of his associates were awarded contracts. Jacob Schaetzel, the first mayor of Sioux Falls (1883-1885), did the excavating, and C.W. Hubbard of the Sioux Falls Granite Company erected the building with stone obtained from the Jasper Stone Company quarry.
The renowned Wallace Dow was the supervising architect. Although not everyone was satisfied with the site, all agreed that Pettigrew's efforts brought an important project to Sioux Falls. It provided jobs for a number of men during the depression which followed the financial "Panic of 1893" and also gave the citizens of the community a greater sense of stability and permanence.
The two-story building was completed at a cost of $152,000 and was opened to the public on May 17, 1895. The exterior with its simple materials, large massing, and great rounded arches shows the influence of the Richardsonian-Romanesque architectural style, so popular in the 1890s. The interior housed
a post office on the first floor and a federal courtroom on the second floor. A third story was added in 1911, and in 1931 a two-story wing was added to the east side of the building. The post office moved to a new facility in 1968.
This handsome stone building is one of Sioux Falls' finest examples of the stone cutters' art and of local building practices of the late nineteenth century.
Dedicated in 1995 by the
Minnehaha County, SD State and
District of SD Branch of US Courts
Historical Societies,
Citibank, Mary Chilton DAR Foundation and
Judge Peder K. Ecker
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