OLD HOUSE ON THE HILL COURTS HISTORY

A statue of Abraham Lincoln is on display inside the Thebes Courthouse.

A mural inside the courthouse depicts scenes when the courthouse was in use.

Zelma Caldwell, left, and Blanch Prater are two members of the Thebes Historical Association who give tours of the courthouse.

THEBES, Ill. -- The majestic old courthouse high atop a hill at Thebes has weathered the years with quiet dignity.

Today, 148 years after it was completed in 1848, the old structure remains an integral, fascinating piece of the area's history.

"There's a lot of history surrounding the courthouse and the town," said Zelma Caldwell, a member of the Thebes Historical Society. The society conducts tours of the building by appointment. "It's a shame that the building can't be open all the time," she said.

Until two years ago, the two-level building was open daily and featured a gift shop, museum, library and dungeons. But, funding ran out, and tours are now by appointment only.

Thebes, a town named after the ancient capital of Upper Egypt, was third county seat of Alexander County. But, just as Cairo became the eventual capital of Egypt, so did Cairo, Ill., become the fourth county seat of Alexander County.

The first county seat and courthouse was in a small community called America, now located in Pulaski County, which was created from portions of Alexander and Massac counties, explained Caldwell and Blanch Prater, who were on hand at the Thebes courthouse on a recent afternoon.

The county seat was moved to Unity in 1833. But, when the courthouse was destroyed by fire in 1843, plans were made to move the country seat to Sparhawk Landing on the Mississippi River. Construction was started on the courthouse in 1844, the same year that Sparhawk's Landing became Thebes.

The courthouse, constructed at a cost of $4,400 on land donated by George and Martha Sparhawk, was designed by John Christian Henry Barkhausen, an architect from Prussia who had immigrated to America in 1835. He settled near Thebes, where he operated a wood yard and ferry across the Mississippi River to neighboring Missouri.

Local materials were used extensively in the construction of the building. Stone was taken from a nearby area, local trees were felled, hand-hewn and "whipsawed" by local labor.

The mortar and plaster also were made locally.

The expansive courtroom and judge's chamber were on the ground level. The below-ground level housed county offices -- clerk, sheriff, and two dungeons. The dungeons had massive, 3-inch thick oak doors, and contained only small openings for ventilation.

One of the best-known visitors to the dungeons was Dred Scott. Historic legend has it that Scott was "imprisoned in the courthouse one night," but more recent legend claims he was not a prisoner, but was offered lodging in the dungeon for a night.

Scott, a stevedore, did return to St. Louis, where he worked on the waterfront, hauling cargo on and off steamboats. He was once a slave.

Visitors to the old courthouse are few now, but when it was open to the public, 2,000 to 5,000 visitors stopped by the old building during an average year.

In the early- to mid-1970s, the courthouse underwent a complete renovation. Chimneys were replaced, flooring and bricks were added to the below-ground level, parts of which previously consisted of dirt.

The upper-level porch, which stretches across the entire front of the structure, was renovated with new floor and banisters. Tourists can now stand on the porch and look over the Mississippi River.

When originally constructed, each window casement had 24 window panes. Over the years, the number of panes were converted to 12. During the restoration, the 24-pane windows were re-installed.

Restoration of the steps, from the bottom of the courthouse to the building were also restored. The steps, which were added during the WPA days of the late 1930s, were originally made of wood. Concrete steps -- 98 of them -- were later added.

Legends circulating throughout Southern Illinois tell of Abraham Lincoln being a speaker at the courthouse when he was a candidate for the Senate in 1858. This is the campaign that brought Lincoln into national prominence, when he debated Stephen Douglas throughout the state, including Jonesboro. Lincoln lost the Senate election, but came back two years later to be elected president.

Although there is no documentary evidence that Lincoln, an attorney, held any cases in the courthouse, he was a frequent visitor to the town.

In the book, "When Lincoln Came to Egypt," author George W. Smith said Lincoln was in Thebes a number of times between 1854 and 1858.

An excerpt from the book states that a letter from Capt. J.L. Hacker, a clerk, riverboat pilot and later a captain, said that Lincoln and Hacker's father, defense attorney John S. Hacker, rode the circuit together, including stops at the Thebes courthouse.

In 1930, an article in the Cairo Evening Citizen by W.N. Moyers stated that old court records reveal that, "Thence comeths the defendant, by his counsel, A. Lincoln, and moves that the case be dismissed for want of prosecution."

There's little doubt that Abraham Lincoln did practice some law at Thebes.

Mrs. Edith Lightner Caldwell of Cape Girardeau, a granddaughter of Judge Lightner, stated in a letter March 14, 1966 that, "Abraham Lincoln made a speech at Jonesboro and rode horse-back to Thebes, where he spent the night at the home of my grandfather, L.L. Lightner, and then went on to Cairo."

Judge L.L. Lightner was the first judge to officiate in the courthouse and handled many cases with spectators sitting on the long, rough hewn planks that served as courthouse benches.

In pre-Civil War days, the courthouse saw the rise of local lawyer, John A. Logan, who was later to become a Civil War hero, U.S. Congressman, Senator and a vice presidential nominee. Logan was prosecuting state's attorney of the Third Judicial Circuit from 1853 to 1856. He argued many cases at the Thebes Courthouse.

The county seat was moved to Cairo in 1859.