The courthouse, which was designed by
William Vitruvius Morrison in the
neoclassical style and built in
ashlar stone, was completed in 1834. The design involved a symmetrical main frontage facing the corner of Athy Road and Old Dublin Road; there was a flight of steps leading up to a large
octastyle portico with
Ionic order columns supporting an
entablature and a
pediment: it was modelled on the
Temple on the Ilissus in
Athens. A Russian
artillery piece, which had been used in the
Crimean War, was brought back to Ireland and placed on the steps of the building in 1858. The county council established their County Secretary's Office on the west side of Athy Road in the mid-20th century before moving further north along the road into modern premises which are now known as the
County Buildings. The courthouse was refurbished in 2002 and continues to be used as a judicial facility. ==References==