The Pickaway County Courthouse was designed by architects Frank Weary and George Kramer and built in 1890. Located at 207 South Court St. in the county seat of Circleville, the building is still in use and today houses the Pickaway County Court of Common Pleas and its Probate and Juvenile divisions.
The courthouse is constructed of stone and brick and has a four-faced clock tower. The courthouse’s lobby features marble floors and smoke-colored marble wainscoting. A Civil War memorial was erected in 1889 on the courthouse grounds using a column from the old courthouse, which was constructed in 1847 but had been outgrown. The 1890 courthouse was constructed on the foundation of the former jail cells.
Pickaway County is named after the American Indian Tribe Piqua, which resided on the Great Miami River in present day Piqua, Miami County.
Judge Shelly R. Harsha is the Probate and Juvenile Judge for Pickaway County, Ohio serving her first term in office. Prior to her election as Judge in 2021, Shelly R. Harsha was the Magistrate for Pickaway County Juvenile & Probate Court.
| Judges | Years in Office | Term Information |
|---|---|---|
| William Wallace Bierce | 1852-1857 | Appointed 1852- re-elected in 1854 |
| Seymour G. Renick | 1857-1858 | Appointed to complete Bierce term |
| Fred Cogswell | 1858-1863 | Appointed 1857, re-elected in 1860 |
| John Walke | 1874-1876 | |
| William C. Finkle | 1874 | Appointed until an election |
| John Walke | 1874-1876 | Elected to complete unexpired term |
| Henry N. Hedges, Sr. | 1876-1884 | Re-elected 1878 and 1881 |
| Albert H. Roose | 1884-1888 | |
| Daniel J. Myers | 1888-1890 | |
| Jacob P. Winstead | 1890-1897 | Re-elected 1893 and 1896, Died in office |
| Aaron R. VanCleaf | 1897-1903 | Appointed 1897, re-elected 1899 and 1902 |
| George H. Pontius | 1903-1908 | Re-elected 1905 |
| Jacob A. Marburger | 1908-1911 | Died in office |
| Aaron R. VanCleaf | 1911-1913 | Appointed 1911 |
| Edgar A. Brown | 1913-1920 | Appointed 1913, Elected 1915 |
| Joseph W. Adkins, Sr. | 1920-1929 | Served 2 – 4 year terms |
| Edgar A. Brown | 1929-1933 | |
| Charles C. Young | 1933-1939 | |
| Lemuel B. Weldon | 1939-1945 | |
| Sterling M. Lamb | 1945-1949 | |
| George D. Young | 1949-1955 | |
| Guy G. Cline | 1955-1985 | |
| Roger L. Kline | 1985-1995 | Left office early, Appointed to another post |
| Kay Kolehmainen | 1995-1997 | Appointed to finish term |
| Jan Michael Long | 1997-2021 | |
| Shelly R. Harsha | 2021-Currrent |
Get Social