Chittenden County Superior Courthouse

This article is about the 1906 building, first used as a post office and custom house. For the former Chittenden County Courthouse (burned down in 1982), see Old Chittenden County Courthouse.

United States historic place

U.S. Post Office and Custom House

U.S. National Register of Historic Places

2011 photo

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Interactive map showing the location for Chittenden County Superior Courthouse

Location| 175 Main Street
Burlington, Vermont
Coordinates| 44°28′33″N 73°12′44″W﻿ / ﻿44.47583°N 73.21222°W﻿ / 44.47583; -73.21222
Built| 1906 (1906)
Architect| James Knox Taylor
Architectural style| Beaux-Arts
NRHP reference No.| 72000114[1]
Added to NRHP| November 21, 1972

The Chittenden County Superior Courthouse, formerly the U.S. Post Office and Custom House, is a historic government building at 175 Main Street in downtown Burlington, Vermont, United States. It was built in 1906 and was designed by James Knox Taylor in the Beaux-Arts style. Known in the 1970s as the Smith-Goldberg U.S. Army Reserve Center, it served historically as a custom house and post office.[2] It currently houses the Chittenden County Superior Court, after the previous county courthouse burned down in 1982.

## Description and history

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The Chittenden County Superior Courthouse stands in downtown Burlington, at the southeast corner of Church and Main Streets. It is a large three-story masonry structure, its exterior finished in marble and dressed granite. The principal facade faces Main Street, and is five bays wide. The ground floor appears as a basement level, with large blocks of marble in horizontal bands and stylized arching over the window openings. The second and third floors, which are in a U shape opening to the south, have windows (tall on the second floor, short on the third) articulated by paired Ionic columns. The building is crowned by an entablature, dentillated cornice, and low balustrade.[3]

The federal government built this facility in 1906, which is one of the state's finest examples of Beaux-Arts architecture. Until 1972 it served as a post office, custom house and federal courthouse. From 1963 until 1972 as the Smith-Goldberg Army Reserve Center) and remained in the Federal inventory.[3] In 1972 The Treasury Department declared the building surplus, and it was acquired by in 1974 by Chittenden County. It presently houses the Chittenden County Superior Court and other judicial functions.[citation needed]

## Gallery

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* The previous U. S. Custom House, front on Church Street, Burlington, Vermont (1901)

* The western facade in 2013

## See also

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* National Register of Historic Places listings in Chittenden County, Vermont

## References

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1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
2. ^ ""Smith Goldberg, U.S. Army Reserve Center Designation Report"". Archived from the original on 2013-10-23. Retrieved 2013-10-22.
3. ^ a b Chester Liebs (1972). "NRHP nomination for U.S. Post Office and Custom House". National Park Service. Retrieved 2016-09-26. with photos from 1972

## External links

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to U.S. Post Office and Custom House (Burlington, Vermont).

* Historic Federal Courthouses page from the Federal Judicial Center

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National Register of Historic Places in Chittenden County, Vermont

National
Historic
Landmarks|

* Round Church
* Shelburne Farms
* Ticonderoga

Districts|

* Martin M. Bates Farmstead
* Battery Street Historic District
* Buell Street–Bradley Street Historic District
* Charlotte Center Historic District
* Giles Chittenden Farmstead
* Church Street Historic District
* City Hall Park Historic District
* Downtown Essex Junction Commercial Historic District
* Fort Ethan Allen Historic District
* Gray Rocks
* Head of Church Street Historic District
* Hinesburg Town Forest
* Honey Hollow Camp
* Jericho Center Historic District
* Jericho Village Historic District
* Dan Johnson Farmstead
* Lakeside Development
* LeClair Avenue Historic District
* Mad River Glen Ski Area Historic District ‡
* Main Street–College Street Historic District
* Mount Philo State Park
* Murray–Isham Farm
* North Street Historic District
* Pearl Street Historic District
* Pine Street Industrial Historic District
* Preston–Lafreniere Farm
* Redstone Historic District
* Remington–Williamson Farm
* Sand Bar State Park
* Shelburne Village Historic District
* South Union Street Historic District
* South Willard Street Historic District
* Sutton Farm
* Underhill State Park
* University Green Historic District
* Wells-Richardson Complex
* M. S. Whitcomb Farm
* Williston Village Historic District
* Winooski Falls Mill District

Buildings|

| Commercial/
Industrial|

* Burlington Montgomery Ward Building
* Burlington Traction Company
* Ethan Allen Engine Company No. 4
* William Fitzgerald Block
* Moquin's Bakery
* Moran Municipal Generation Station
* Old Red Mill and Mill House
* Porter Screen Company
* Richmond Underwear Company Building
* Saltus Grocery Store
* Tavern on Mutton Hill
* Winooski Block

|

Government|

* Chittenden County Courthouse †
* U.S. Post Office and Custom House

Educational|

* Carnegie Building of the Fletcher Free Library
* Champlain School
* Converse Hall
* District No. 5 Schoolhouse
* Jonesville Academy
* Proctor Maple Research Farm

Religious|

* First Baptist Church
* First Methodist Church
* Howard Mortuary Chapel
* Huntington Lower Village Church
* Methodist Episcopal Church of Winooski
* Old Ohavi Zedek Synagogue
* Richmond Congregational Church
* Williston Congregational Church

Residential|

* Ethan Allen Homestead
* Apartment Building at 27 and 31 Peru Street and 29 Johnson Street
* Wilson Alwyn "Snowflake" Bentley House
* Roswell Butler House
* Martin Chittenden House
* Dumas Tenements
* Duplex at 22-26 Johnson Street
* Duplex at 73-75 Sherman Street
* Follett House
* Galusha House
* Grasse Mount
* House at 44 Front Street
* Martin L. Kelsey House
* LeFerriere House
* McNeil Homestead
* Mintzer House
* Normand House
* Old Stone House
* Charles R. Palmer House
* Cicero Goddard Peck House
* John B. Robarge Duplex
* Roberge-Desautels Apartment House
* Daniel Webster Robinson House
* Lucy Ruggles House
* Stannard House
* Lee Tracy House
* Edward Wells House
* Wells-Jackson Carriage House Complex
* Winterbotham Estate

Sites|

* Burlington Bay Horse Ferry
* General Butler (shipwreck)
* O.J. Walker (shipwreck)
* Phoenix (shipwreck)
* Winooski Archeological Site

Structures|

* Burlington Breakwater
* Holmes Creek Covered Bridge
* Quinlan's Covered Bridge
* Seguin Covered Bridge
* West Milton Bridge
* Winooski River Bridge

Footnotes|

† This entry has been removed from the registry.
‡ This historic property also has portions in an adjacent county.

See also: National Register of Historic Places listings in Chittenden County, Vermont and List of National Historic Landmarks in Vermont
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