Decatur County, Indiana
Decatur County was named in honor of Commodore Stephen Decatur, USN. Born Jan 5, 1779, Died, Mar 22, 1820.A bronze plaque, in his honor, hangs in the corridor of the Decatur County Courthouse. It bears an inscription of a quote that Commodore Decatur made famous "Our Country! In her intercourse with foreign nations, may she always be in the right; but our country, right or wrong."
Decatur County was one of the four counties carved out of the southern part of Delaware county by an act of the legislature approved December 31, 1822, and the act provided that same be effective March 4, 1822. The other counties are Rush, Shelby and Henry.
On June 14, 1822 the four Commissioners appointed by Governor Jennings, decided upon the name of Greensburg, and chose as the site of the county seat a section of 60 acres offered by Col. Thomas Hendricks and 40 acres belonging to John Walker, who had settled at Shelbyville. The name of Greensburg was suggested by Mrs. Hendricks because it was the name of the Pennsylvania town from which they had moved.
The Courthouse has undergone several renovation projects over the years......Originally built in 1860, the original historic landmark was constructed of brick with limestone trim. In the early 1900's the exterior was covered with stucco, in the early 1970's the exterior underwent another renovation.
In 1994 it became necessary, due to the county's growth, to make a decision to either renovate and enlarge the existing building, or build a new structure totally. In 1995 the Board of Commissioners voted to construct an addition to the existing courthouse and restore selected elements of the historic structure. The construction was completed and the building turned over to the Commissioners in December, 1997.
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