The Renfrew County Courthouse is a designated heritage property and operational courthouse in Pembroke, Ontario, Canada.Original buildingThe neoclassical complex includes three buildings: the courthouse itself, a registry office and a small jail. The courthouse was built from 1862 to 1866, the registry office from 1862 to 1868, and the jail from 1864 to 1866. As the Confederation of Canada occurred in 1867, the building is referred to as "Confederation-era". The original courthouse was designed by Henry Horsey.The registry office was built to the fire-prevention standards of the then-Chief Architect of Canada, Kivas Tully, who had an "obsession" with safety.The sandstone used in the original construction was quarried at nearby Morrison Island.The County Atlas of 1881 describes the courthouse as "one of the finest in Canada, combining the features of chaste beauty with simple elegance of construction in a degree possessed by few if any others in the country." The exterior of the registry was re-bricked in the 1980s, and the heritage value suffered.DesignationThe complex is protected under the Cultural Heritage Protocol Agreement the Ministry of Tourism, Culture & Recreation and the Management Board Secretariat (Ontario Realty Corporation). It has not, however, been municipally designated under the Ontario Heritage Act.
