Florence County was created in 1882 from parts of Oconto and Marinette counties; some sources give 1881 as the date the county was created. There is also some dispute over the name of the county: some sources reference the Florence Mining company and other claim that the county was named after Florence Julst who was one of the early settlers in the area.
Florence County is one of two counties in Wisconsin that does not have an incorporated community; Menominee County is the other county. The Florence County seat is the town of Florence, so Florence is one of Wisconsin’s Eponymous Counties.
The Florence County courthouse (and jail) is located at 501 Lake Street in Florence. It was built in 1897 in the Romanesque Revival style. The structure was built of brick with local sandstone and limestone. The courthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 2, 1985. An addition was built in 1994.