Arson fire destroys Charleston courthouse

Twenty-five years ago this week -- Feb. 10, 1997 -- the Mississippi County Courthouse at Charleston, Missouri, went up in flames, the handiwork of an unknown arsonist.

Published Tuesday, Feb. 11, 1997, in the Southeast Missourian:

This view from the water tower behind Charleston City Hall shows the second floor of the Mississippi County Courthouse completely gutted following a fire of suspicious origin early Monday, Feb. 10, 1997. The county jail is in the foreground. (Don Shrubshell ~ Southeast Missourian archive)

MISSISSIPPI COURTHOUSE DESTROYED; ARSON SUSPECTED IN CHARLESTON FIRE

By Scott Moyers
Southeast Missourian

CHARLESTON -- Mississippi County officials met Monday to weigh options of where to carry on county government after an early-morning fire destroyed the 96-year-old Mississippi County Courthouse.

Arson is suspected.

County officials didn't reach a decision on where to conduct county business during a meeting of the Mississippi County Commission late Monday. Several possibilities were discussed.

The fire was reported about 4:15 a.m. Monday, said Mike Seibert, Charleston's director of public safety. Firefighters from six departments responded to the fire. Officials with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms were called in.

Butch Amann, a fire investigator with the state fire marshal's office, said the fire apparently started on the second floor but it was too early to determine a cause.

The entire second floor of the courthouse, including the courtroom, prosecuting attorney's office, judge's chambers, and the offices of probation, public administrator, juvenile services and jail visitation were destroyed.

"We haven't made any determination yet, but we have some suspicious circumstances that have led us to believe we've got to dig into this further," said Amann.

Amann said it would take two or three days to investigate the cause. About 30 officers from the AFT's national response team -- the same team that investigated the Oklahoma City federal building bombing -- were to begin an investigation today, he said.

Firefighters from the Miner Fire Department, top photo, sprayed water on the Mississippi County Courthouse in Charleston, which was destroyed by fire Monday morning. (Fred Lynch ~ Southeast Missourian archive)

It was the second fire in Charleston early Monday. About 30 minutes before the courthouse broke out in flames, firefighters responded to a fire in a storage building about four blocks away at the Rowling-Moxley Co. While they were there a report of the courthouse fire was received.

Investigators are looking into the possibility that the fires are connected.

No one was hurt in the courthouse fire. Twenty-two prisoners from the adjoining county jail were evacuated. They were escorted across the street to Charleston City Hall to be held and then taken back to the jail shortly after noon.

The red-brick, two-story building, topped with a white dome, was built in 1901 on the town square. It had burned once before in 1938 during a remodeling accident.

The building was insured for $1.4 million, said Jim Blumenberg, Mississippi County presiding commissioner. It was in the process of undergoing $800,000 in renovations, he said.

They were refurbishing some of the woodwork and flooring, and building an elevator to meet American Disabilities Act standards, he said.

"It's disappointing," Blumenberg said. "It was an old building with a lot of character."

County officials were hopeful that records were intact on computer disks in the treasurer's office and at a local bank.

"I hope all of our files have been saved, but all the reassessments, I'm afraid, are destroyed," County Assessor Norma Skaggs said. "We will have to begin all over again with those."

Mississippi County Courthouse custodian Bert Keene, left, and County Treasurer Sandra Smoot carried books taken from a fireproof vault in the treasurer's office of the courthouse following a fire that destroyed the building in Charleston Monday, Feb. 10, 1997. (Don Shrubshell ~ Southeast Missourian archive)

Circuit Clerk (Hubert) "Junior" DeLay said voter registration, financial records, tax records and the recorder's office's records were kept on master computer tapes that could be accessed through the nearby New Madrid County Courthouse.

Dottie McKenzie, deputy court clerk, said she had managed to get some of the original records from her office as did Sandra Smoot, county treasurer. Smoot recovered the county checkbooks and deposit slips.

The town of 5,000 mourned the loss of the historic building.

"It's a big loss, a landmark," said City Manager Herb Llewellyn. "If you're used to rural America, the old county courthouse is pretty much a fixture. This was one of those: It had an old clock in the belltower and it was quite a beautiful building."

Some information for this story was provided by the Associated Press.

WHERE DO WE GO NOW? COUNTY OFFICIALS ASK

Butch Amann, right, fire inspector for the Missouri fire marshal's office, explained the fire investigation procedure to Mississippi County commissioners, from left, Jim Blumenberg, Mark Lucas and Homer Oliver, and Mississippi County Clerk (Hubert) "Junior" DeLay during a meeting Monday night, Feb. 10, 1997, in Charleston. (Don Shrubshell ~ Southeast Missourian archive)

By Scott Moyers
Southeast Missourian

CHARLESTON -- Despite the loss of a courthouse, Mississippi county government officials agreed that the business of governing must go on.

But where?

That is what about 30 county government workers and Charleston residents met at the Charleston Public Library to discuss Monday night, just 12 hours after a fire of suspicious origin destroyed the Mississippi County Courthouse.

After more than a hour of discussion, the meeting ended with no concrete solutions on where business will be conducted.

"We don't want to make any hasty decisions," said County Commissioner Homer Oliver. "We just want to take our time and look at all of our options."

It probably will be 18 months to two years before construction of a new building can get started, Oliver said.

"We've certainly got monetary restraints," said Oliver. "Who knows what will happen? But we want county government to get moving again as soon as possible. We've got to find places we can stay for maybe two years."

Meanwhile, county commissioners, judges, clerks and others must figure out where they can operate temporarily until more permanent quarters can be found.

"It doesn't matter that we're all together, just that we've got adequate space to run the Mississippi County government," said Presiding Commissioner Jim Blumenberg.

Business was conducted in the courthouse on a daily basis. It housed several government offices, including the courtroom, prosecutor's office, judge's chambers, and the offices of probation, public administrator, juvenile services and jail visitation.

Finding temporary housing for all of the offices will be no easy task, Blumenberg said.

A realtor, E. Paul Jackson, said that he has 10 good-sized rooms for rent. A resident suggested the Russell Hotel has some spare rooms that might be of use.

Associate Circuit Judge Lynn Brown said that court could possibly be held in Charleston City Hall. He said all three of the court clerks might be able to work there. But Brown said the next court case will not be heard for at least two weeks.

"It will take at least that long to get everything set up," he said.

Much of the computer and office equipment in the courthouse were destroyed by water or fire, Blumenberg said. He said he is not sure how soon new equipment can be purchased.

That will hold up getting county government moving again, he said.

"Don't doubt that we want to get things back on track," Blumenberg said. "But we've got to take it a step at a time."

Butch Amann, a fire investigator with the state fire marshal's office, addressed the group, saying that no official cause had been determined.

"We've heard a lot of rumors out there," he said. "But nothing has been confirmed."

Amann said that since the investigation was under way only investigators would be allowed inside the courthouse. He said he understood that people were anxious, and the investigation will be conducted as quickly and as thoroughly as possible.

In the days that followed the conflagration, state and federal investigators confirmed the fire that destroyed the Mississippi County Courthouse was deliberately set. The investigation continued for some time, but the arsonist was never arrested, this despite the fact that a reward for the perpetrator grew to $20,000.

County commissioners at first agreed to relocate county offices to an office building at 801 E. Marshall St., in Charleston. However, that space proved too small and, in a controversial decision, county offices instead went to the old Division of Family Services Building at East Prairie, Missouri. The move away from Charleston, the county seat, raised the hackles of some residents. But, in announcing the decision, Mississippi County Presiding Commissioner Jim Blumenberg stressed, "All we've done is temporarily located county government in East Prairie due to the loss of our courthouse." He said county commission meetings would be held in Charleston and a couple of offices probably would be maintained in Charleston.

Another controversy arose when the decision was made by commissioners to raze the fire-damaged remains of the courthouse and build a new facility on the site. Those who wanted to restore the historic structure — including former Missouri First Lady Betty Hearnes — voiced their concerns. But in the end the old gave way to a new $2.5 million courthouse. It opened for business in January 2000.