Truemors
Rumbold's dome in the courthouse is wrought and cast iron with a copper exterior. There are four lunettes in the dome showing paintings by Carl Wimar depicting four events in St. Louis history. Ettore Miragoli painted over them in 1880 but they were restored in 1888.
The courthouse was abandoned in 1930 when the Civil Courts Building was built.
In 1861 William Rumbold replaced a cupola with an Italian Renaissance cast iron Dome modeled on St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City. The United States Capitol dome which was built at the same time during the American Civil War is also modeled on the basilica. The St. Louis dome was completed in 1864.
Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (1)
at 05:15 on May 30th, 2008
Old St. Louis Courthouse has a dome modeled on St. Peter's Basilica in <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Vatican City.
<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />
In 1861 William Rumbold replaced a cupola with an Italian Renaissance cast iron Dome. The St. Louis dome was completed in 1864. Rumbold's dome in the courthouse is wrought and cast iron with a copper exterior.
One of the most noted court cases that took place in the St. Louis Courthouse was Dred Scott v. Sandford. All of the trials including a Missouri Supreme Court hearing were held in this court house. In 1847 Dred Scott sought freedom from the practice of American slavery for himself and his wife Harriet. The case was to ultimately be decided by the United States Supreme Court in 1856, Dred Scott v. Sandford, which ruled against him in 1856. The decision was one of the polarizing issues in the run up to the American Civil War.