The Scioto County Courthouse was designed by architect John Scudder Adkins of Cincinnati and built in 1927. Located at 602 7th St. in the county seat of Portsmouth, the building is still in use and today houses the Scioto County Court of Common Pleas and its probate, juvenile and domestic relations divisions, as well as the county jail.
The courthouse sits on a granite foundation and is constructed of yellow brick covered with a thin layer of marble blocks. The interior is composed of concrete and marble with brick walls covered in white plaster. Marble columns adorn the courthouse’s exterior dome. Inside, 10 Ionic columns support the entablature and give the building an imposing look.
Scioto County is named after a Shawnee Indian word for “fresh water” or “falling water,” after the Scioto River. Scioto County is located at the confluence of the Scioto and Ohio rivers. The courthouse was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.