The majestic Gasconade County Courthouse rises on a bluff on the west end of downtown Hermann. It seems to have been undergoing some renovations, as its newly copper domes have replaced dull-colored ones in older photographs.

Apparently it claims to be the only courthouse in America paid for with private funds by a local businessman named Charles D. Eitzen to the tune of $50,000 in 1898. I cannot verify this. His business holdings included Laclede Gas and Boatmen’s Bank in St. Louis.

The surrounding neighborhood includes some amazing houses, which are probably the first generation of German settlers’ houses constructed around the courthouse, well preserved and in good condition.