We had an interesting situation at the Library Commission this month when two of our staff members were called to serve on a jury the same week as the NLA/NEMA library conference. One ended before it began (mistrial) and the other only lasted a few days. I served on a jury years ago and actually enjoyed the experience. Despite the temporary interruption of my normal activities, I found it fascinating – jury selection, attorney questioning to “winnow” the jury pool, testimony, deliberation, and a visit from the judge after it was over to tell us he thought we “got it right” (whew!). Pondering these legal affairs got me wondering what images relating to trials and courts we have in Nebraska Memories.
Several participants have contributed photos of county or federal courthouses, sometimes several buildings over a span of years. They were important centers of government, and are still the primary government buildings in many Nebraska communities. Some had very modest beginnings.
The
first Cheyenne County Courthouse
was originally Suttler’s Store at Fort Sidney.
The front porch was a convenient place
for local dignitaries to gather and have their picture taken.
The
next courthouse was a much grander affair that also served as a backdrop for this
famous Nebraska politician to be photographed while on the stump. It remained standing until a new courthouse was built around it in 1968.
Some cases go all the way to the top. This photo from the Townsend Studio collection shows the seven men serving as Nebraska Supreme Court Judges in 1921. The first female Supreme Court judge, Lindsey Miller-Lerman, was appointed in 2006. Photos of the current
Supreme Court chambers and justices can be viewed on the Nebraska Judicial Branch website.
More images of Nebraska courthouses can be viewed
here.
Visit
Nebraska Memories to search for or browse through many more historical images digitized from photographs, negatives, postcards, maps, lantern slides, books and other materials. Nebraska Memories is a cooperative project to digitize Nebraska-related historical and cultural heritage materials and make them available to researchers of all ages via the Internet. Nebraska Memories is brought to you by the Nebraska Library Commission. If your institution is interested in participating in Nebraska Memories, see
http://nlc.nebraska.gov/nebraskamemories/participation.aspx for more information, or contact
Beth Goble, Government Information Services Director, or
Devra Dragos, Technology & Access Services Director.
