The Racine County Courthouse on May 22, 2016
Racine County was created in 1836 from unorganized land which had been part of the original Milwaukee County. The name “Racine” apparently comes from the French word for “root” and was chosen because of the Root River which flows through the county and enters Lake Michigan at the city of Racine. This is a nice story, but if you think about it, this would make a lot more sense if the river was also named Racine.
The City of Racine is the county seat. It is located at the mouth of the Root River. In 1674 Father Jacques Marquette and his assistants camped at the mouth of the Root River. They were the first European explorers to visit what is now Racine County. By 1791 there was a trading post on the site, and a settlement was founded in 1834. The original name was Port Gilbert. The name never really caught on and in 1841 it was incorporated as the village of Racine, because “racine” is the French word for “root” which is the name of the river. This still seems odd to me. In 1848 Racine was incorporated as a city.
Racine has many well-known industries, such as S. C. Johnson & Son, Dremel Corporation and InSinkErator. Yes the garbage disposal was invented in Racine in 1927. Malted milk was also invented in Racine in 1887 by William Horlick. Frank Lloyd Wright built the Johnson Wax Headquarters in Racine in the 1930s.
The Racine County courthouse is on the National Register of Historic Places; it is located at 730 Wisconsin Avenue in Racine. The courthouse was built in 1931. I visited on the morning of Sunday May 22, 2016. It was a beautiful day and I got some good pictures of the courthouse. It’s a tall building unlike so many other courthouses, and it doesn’t seem to have been encumbered with any additions; mainly because new law enforcement buildings were constructed on the other side of Wisconsin Avenue. On the north side of the courthouse is an open grassy area which seems curiously unused. I think this would make an excellent park someday.
Afterward, I drove to the lake shore and took a few pictures. Racine is an older city that is really just in the process of redeveloping the old downtown area. Main Street looks very nice, but there are some areas where buildings have been torn down but nothing has been rebuilt so far. I guess Racine is kind of a work in progress. From Racine I drove to Kenosha along the lake on Highway 32 and on my way out of town I passed by the Johnson Wax Headquarters. I will have to visit Racine again when I have more time to explore.
I don’t really have any memories of Racine to share. It’s just a county I’ve driven through on the way to or from Chicago, or on one occasion, Kenosha. This visit to see the courthouse was the first time I’ve ever been in the city of Racine. I was kind of impressed with the city and I look forward to visiting again someday.