Long Island City Courthouse

25-10 Court Square | Long Island City | built 1876

Open on the map7 entries

The lot about 1940
About 1940. Via 1940s.nyc
The lot about 1985
About 1985. Via 80s.nyc

The city photographed every building for its tax records around 1940 and again in the 1980s. NYC Municipal Archives.

Written with AI from the source each entry cites, then fact-checked.

  1. 1877

    March

    Queens County's new courthouse finally goes into full use after delays and a scandal

    The state legislature agreed in 1870 to move the Queens county seat from Jamaica to Long Island City, near where the Long Island rail lines met, and money for a courthouse came in 1872. George Hathorne of Springfield, Massachusetts, designed a two-story Second Empire building with a tall mansard roof and towers, built by D. C. Weeks & Son. Construction dragged and became the subject of a scandal before the courts fully moved in.

    “There were a number of delays and a scandal arose about the construction of the building. It was not until March of 1877 that it was in full use.”

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

  2. 1904

    Fire guts the courthouse, sending the courts to Flushing Town Hall

    A disastrous fire in 1904 left only the burned-out shell of Hathorne's courthouse. While it was rebuilt, the courts sat at the Flushing Town Hall. Architect Peter M. Coco, a Cooper Institute graduate regarded as one of Long Island City's leading architects, was given the job of redesigning the building, and had to work within the old walls rather than tear them down.

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

  3. 1908

    Peter Coco's rebuilt courthouse rises two stories higher in neo-English Renaissance dress

    Coco stripped the old walls, replaced the mansard roof with two new stories, razed the towers and kept the original plan inside a four-story building with limestone-framed windows. Medallions over the arched entrance carry the dates 1874 and 1908 for the two building campaigns. The Ionic columns at the door have small helmeted heads tucked between their scrolls, and eagles over cartouches mark the corners.

    “In the spandrels of the arch are two medallions upon which are carved the dates '1874' and '1908' the two periods of construction.”

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

  4. 1927

    Ruth Snyder and Henry Judd Gray stand trial here for murder

    The trial of Ruth Snyder and Henry Judd Gray, her lover, for murder drew crowds of onlookers to the Long Island City courthouse. It was held in the great double-height courtroom on the third floor, partly lit by a large skylight, which made a dramatic stage for the case. Both defendants were found guilty and later executed.

    “In 1927 the famous murder trial of Ruth Snyder and her lover Henry Judd Gray, which attracted curious crowds, was held here.”

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

  5. 1932

    The County Court is pushed out of the building to make room for the Supreme Court

    The County Court was housed in the Long Island City courthouse until 1932, when it was forced to leave so the State Supreme Court could take over the space. Annexes went up in 1935 and 1936 to house the offices of the District Attorney and the Sheriff, and a series of different courts used the building from the 1930s on.

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

  6. 1976

    May 11

    The Long Island City courthouse becomes a New York City landmark

    The Landmarks Preservation Commission held its hearing on March 23, 1976, when five witnesses spoke for designation and none opposed it. Designating the building, then a branch of the State Supreme Court, the commission noted that it was the second courthouse on the site and had long been the center of judicial activity for Queens County, as well as the setting for many notable trials.

    Source: NYC Landmarks Preservation Commission

  7. 2006

    May

    Repairs begin on the courthouse's brick walls, roofs and stained-glass courtroom

    Work starting in May 2006 repaired the brick exterior and reroofed the main building and wings against water damage. The project also restored a well-known third-floor courtroom with a two-story stained glass ceiling, which was to get new wooden floors close to the originals. The building today houses the Civil Term of the Queens County Supreme Court.

    Source: Wikipedia

Further reading

Nearby

All 61 buildings with stories in Long Island City