MLive says: “Many of Michigan's original, historic courthouse buildings were destroyed and replaced by modern, less-decorative construction in decades passed. Others that still stand are no longer used for their original purpose. But in Gratiot County, they held onto a beautiful piece of history by hanging onto the original courthouse in Ithaca. The 1902 courthouse has been kept up and few changes have been made to the neoclassical structure with an impressive belfry. Those who work in the courthouse get to hang out in this lovely historic place each weekday. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is a Michigan State Historic Site.”
May 7, 2021
As I drove into Gratiot County, the early afternoon rain was clearing and the sun was making an appearance. Ithaca was a small town, and rather sleepy for a Friday afternoon. It had the regular symptoms of most small towns across Michigan: a whole strip of chain restaurants and gas stations heading into town, a one-to-two block “downtown,” and a decent amount of empty storefronts where local businesses used to reside.
I pulled up to the courthouse and was stunned by how large and well-kept it was, compared to the rest of the aging buildings in town: it was obviously a point of pride. It wasn’t a terribly complex building on the exterior in terms of architecture, but it was indeed beautiful.
I circled the exterior of the courthouse, taking in the grandeur from all angles and noting the many additions that had happened over the years (they were somewhat obvious compared to the original structure). As a functioning courthouse, there were police officers, clerks, and general public coming in and out of the building for their respective matters.
I did try to enter the courthouse, assuming the inside would be featuring some lovely design - perhaps original marble, brass fixtures, and impressive tile work? Alas, the courthouse was open for regular business, and because of the pandemic they were temperature checking everyone coming in and allowing those who had appointments only. Not surprised by this, I shrugged it off and took a stroll down the street to check out the rest of the buildings downtown.
When I snapped the photo of the storefront above (honestly, pulled in by the window paint: “NOW TAKING CREDIT & DEBIT” in 2021), the shop owner came out to question me. She was a small and very old woman who wanted to know why I was photographing their town, and assumed I was there on behalf of a developer to try and purchase her store (an obvious symptom of the empty buildings downtown and creeping corporate chains). She made it very clear she’d be going nowhere! When I explained that I was just a local tourist visiting, she calmed down and asked where I was from; she didn’t like that I was from “the city” and went into another fit of ranting about “city people” coming into town. She did make sure though, to tell me that Ithaca is a beautiful town with beautiful people, and oh, had I seen the courthouse yet?