Hunterdon County Courthouse
Encyclopedia
Flemington, New Jersey
Flemington is a borough in Hunterdon County, New Jersey, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the borough population was 4,581. It is the county seat of Hunterdon County....
, the county seat of Hunterdon County
Hunterdon County, New Jersey
Hunterdon County is a county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2010 United States Census, the population was 128,349. It is part of the New York Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Flemington....
, New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, that is best known as the site of the 1935 "Trial of the Century
Trial of the century
Trial of the century is an idiomatic phrase used to describe certain well-known court cases, especially of the 20th century. It is often used popularly as a rhetorical device to attach importance to a trial and as such is not an objective observation but is the opinion of whoever uses it. As...
" of Bruno Hauptmann
Bruno Hauptmann
Bruno Richard Hauptmann was a German ex-convict sentenced to death for the abduction and murder of the 20-month-old son of Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh. The Lindbergh kidnapping became known as "The Crime of the Century".-Background:Hauptmann was born in Kamenz in the German Empire,...
and his conviction and sentence of death for his role in the Lindbergh kidnapping
Lindbergh kidnapping
The kidnapping of Charles Augustus Lindbergh, Jr., was the abduction of the son of aviator Charles Lindbergh and Anne Morrow Lindbergh. The toddler, 18 months old at the time, was abducted from his family home in East Amwell, New Jersey, near the town of Hopewell, New Jersey, on the evening of...
.
Construction
While Hunterdon County was established in 1714, the first courthouse in the county was built in 1791, replacing a facility that existed in TrentonTrenton, New Jersey
Trenton is the capital of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Trenton had a population of 84,913...
, in Mercer County
Mercer County, New Jersey
As of the census of 2000, there were 350,761 people, 125,807 households, and 86,303 families residing in the county. The population density was 1,552 people per square mile . There were 133,280 housing units at an average density of 590 per square mile...
. This first courthouse lasted until it was destroyed by fire in 1828, with arson the suspected cause.
The current courthouse was built in 1828 on the site of the original facility, with stone from the first building used to construct the jail behind the courthouse. The jail was used until 1985 when it was replaced by a new county jail; the courthouse remained in use until 1996 when a new justice center was opened.
"Trial of the Century"
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
reported that the courthouse was drawing hundreds of curious spectators.
Edward J. Reilly was hired by the Daily Mirror to serve as Hauptmann's attorney. Two other lawyers, Lloyd Fisher and Frederick Pope, were co-counselors. David T. Wilentz
David T. Wilentz
David Theodore Wilentz was the Attorney General of New Jersey from 1934 to 1944. In 1935 he successfully prosecuted Bruno Hauptmann in the Lindbergh kidnapping trial...
, New Jersey Attorney General
New Jersey Attorney General
The Attorney General of New Jersey is a member of the executive cabinet of the state. The office is appointed by the Governor of New Jersey and term limited...
, led the prosecution.
In addition to Hauptmann's possession of the ransom money, the State introduced evidence showing a strong similarity between Hauptmann's handwriting and the handwriting on the ransom notes. The State also introduced photographic evidence demonstrating that the wood from the ladder left at the crime scene matched a plank from the floor of Hauptmann's attic. Condon and Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
both testified that Hauptmann was "John". Another witness, Amandus Hockmuth, testified that he saw Hauptmann near the scene of the crime.
Hauptmann was ultimately convicted of the crimes and sentenced to death. His appeals were rejected, though New Jersey Governor Harold G. Hoffman
Harold G. Hoffman
Harold Giles Hoffman was an American politician, a Republican who served as the 41st Governor of New Jersey, from 1935 to 1938. He also served two terms representing in the United States House of Representatives, from 1927 to 1931.-Early life:Hoffman was born in South Amboy, New Jersey to Frank...
granted a temporary reprieve of Hauptmann's execution and made the politically unpopular move of having the New Jersey Board of Pardons review the case, though the Board found no reason to overturn the verdict. He was electrocuted on April 19, 1937, just over four years after the kidnapping.
Modern times
A matching grant of more than $500,000 for restoration, rehabilitation and stabilization of the site was received from the New Jersey Historic Trust in 1997, part of $11.5 million granted to 30 historic sites across the state, and the only site selected in Hunterdon County.Artifacts from the courthouse remain on display, including the witness chair from the Lindbergh Kidnapping trial and hand-carved jury chairs The courthouse has been used for reenactments of the 1935 trial, including a 1994 presentation of the play Lindbergh and Hauptmann: The Trial of the Century.