The first general store was built in O'Brien in 1869. The same year a hotel was built across the road north and east of the Moding place on the farm owned for years by Peter Richard of Peterson, now owned by the Bibler family. The lumber for the hotel was hauled overland from Denison, Iowa. Perhaps this contributed to its construction cost of $5,300. Later, an appraisal evaluated its worth at $1,500.

  Even though it has been extensively remodeled, a portion of the original hotel structure still stands on the site. The owner of the hotel, C. W. Inman, was the first postmaster in O'Brien so the hotel served as a post office, too. But at times the use of the southwest room downstairs demonstrated true pioneer spirit. Stories were told of leading horses one at a time from the porch into the room in severe winter weather so that shoes could be nailed to the horses' feet.

  By 1872, the courthouse occupied three buildings located around the public square; one building serving as an office in the forepart for the county auditor with his residence in the rear.

  The schoolhouse, located some distance south of where the Moding home stands today, was constructed from bricks that were made and fired at the head of a ravine east of the Bibler house. A mud grinder, to prepare the clay, stood at the site for years. The schoolhouse, often used for public meetings at night, was lighted by tallow candles.

  Peterson, three miles east of O'Brien was the county seat of Clay County at that time. It provided many services for the residents of O'Brien. This included the sawing of logs at the Peterson mill for building the residences and other structures in O'Brien. The residents went to Peterson to have their wheat ground into flour. One written account of the period states it was the worst flour ever offered to man but they had to take it and like it.

  Many firsts can be attributed to the town of O'Brien such as the first hotel in O'Brien County, the first postmaster, the first banking service, the first newspaper, the brick schoolhouse and the courthouse. But all of this was not enough to hold the county seat in O'Brien.

  As more and more settlers moved into the county, the courthouse location in O'Brien in the extreme southeast comer of the county became a growing issue. To resolve the matter, an election was held on November 11, 1872 to determine the location of the courthouse. A total of 360 votes were cast with 307 voting to move the courthouse to the exact geographical center of the county. One historian wrote, "Probably the only case in Iowa, perhaps anywhere, where a bare spot of raw prairie was actually voted to be the county seat:' This eventually became the town of Primghar.

  Soon after the election, the building serving the county auditor was moved to Primghar. One general store was moved to Sutherland. One after another, the business buildings were closed so that in the short span of 15 years, the once promising county seat town rose and then practically vanished. Then the area became known as "Old O'Brien" by which it is still affectionately known.

  The forty acres of land where the town of O'Brien was located was purchased by Fred Moding who moved with his wife Meta and infant son Carl to this place on March 1, 1895. This has been the Moding homestead and the center of the Old O'Brien neighborhood ever since. Two other sons, Forrest and Winfred, and one daughter, Martha, were born on the place. They grew up on the farm and attended the rural school nearby known as Waterman Township, District No.7. The school was located on the northeast comer of the George Schierholz farm, serving not only to provide education for the young people growing up in the neighborhood, but as a cornmunity landmark for years. But it too has been the victim of progress.

  Win, the only member of the Moding family living today (July 30, 1987), remembers two log cabins from the town of O'Brien still standing when he was a boy. One cabin stood on his parents' place east and slightly south of their house, just on the west side of the east farm line fence. The other cabin stood to the north on the Towner place just east of the fence line. This place was owned for many years by August Grapenthin.

  It has been 115 years since the pioneers of O'Brien County voted to move the courthouse and county seat from O'Brien. With the demise of the town, the farm and immediate area became known as Old O'Brien - a name that has endured through the passing years and is fondly remembered by all who have lived in the neighborhood.

  Calumet, platted in 1887; Archer, which was named for John H. Archer, owner of the land on which the town was platted in 1888; Gaza, which derives its name from Gaza on the Mediterranean in the Holy Land. The town was originally platted in 1887 as Woodstock but was changed when it was discovered Iowa had another town by that name; Paullina, which was named from the Henry and D. Edward Paullin brothers, early settlers and large landowners there when the town was established. The town was laid out in 1882 by the Western Town Lot Company; Sutherland, which was named for the Duke of Sutherland, some of whose neighbors were settled near there. The town was laid out in 1882 by the Western Town Lot Company; Hartley, which was established in 1878 with the coming of the Milwaukee Railroad and was named after one of the surveyors and engineers involved in building the railroad; Primghar, the county seat, which received its name from the first letters of eight names of those who had a major part in platting the town. Pumphrey, the treasurer, drives the first nail; Roberts, the donor, is quick on his trail; Inman slips slyly his first letter in; McCormack adds M, which made the full Prim; Green, thinking of groceries, gives them the G; Hayes drops then an H, without asking a fee; Albright, the joker, with his jokes all at par; Rerick brings up the rear and crowns all "Primghar".

  It was in 1873 when it was decided to move the county seat to the exact center of the county. 40 acres were platted in the very middle and thus the town of Primghar came into being. Although Primghar did not incorporate until 1888, it had its beginnings in 1872-73. A courthouse was built in 1874; Sheldon, which was started in 1872 and was named by Gen. J. W. Bishop in honor of Israel Sheldon, New Jersey, who was largely interested in the Sioux City and St. Paul Railroad that was first built through the area by Gen. Bishop, Sheldon and their associates. Sheldon was the first railroad town and also the first town to incorporate; and Sanborn, which was first planned to be called Edenville, but it was named after George W. Sanborn, then superintendent of Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad Company. It was platted in 1879.

  Another courthouse was built in 1870. This was a wood frame building about 14 x 16 feet. The next year this one was destroyed by fire and a similar one was built in its place.

  In 1874, a courthouse was built on the present location at a cost of $2,000. This building was about 35 feet square.

  The fourth contest took place on March 3, 1911. Sheldon citizens thought that because Sheldon was the largest town in the county and because they had three railroads and Primghar still did not have any, they should be the county seat. The people of Sheldon circulated a petition. This lasted 90 days. On June 8, 1911, the Board of Supervisors had a hearing and after going over the signatures on the petition, the final vote tally was 3,161 from Primghar and 1,447 for Sheldon, so, Primghar won again.

  Board of Supervisors in session September 29 adopted a resolution calling a special election upon the proposition, to be held upon the day of the general election, November 3, 1914.

  The official canvass of the votes cast at such a special election showed that the measure had carried; 1,916 votes being cast in its favor, and 1,622 against.

  The Courthouse Bond issue of $140,000 was sold January 21, 1915 to George M. Bechtel & Company of Davenport, Iowa, for $141,756 and accrued interest.

  Smith & Keffer of Des Moines were chosen architects in open competition, and awarded contract on February 23, 1915.

  The plumbing and heating contract was awarded to the Clefton Company, Inc. of Owatonna, Minnesota, on June 15, 1915 and J. E. Lovejoy of Des Moines received the award on the general construction contract on June 26.

  Actual construction work on the new building was cornmenced July 3, 1915.

  The design for the new courthouse is the work of Smith & Keffer, now Keffer & Jones, Architects, of Des Moines, Iowa.

  The design is classic, in the Doric order, of the later Roman period, and is of those simple, monumental lines adaptable to the modem public building. The main part of the building is to face the east and is featured by a great column treatment applied to the two principal stories and extending nearly the full length of the building, being supported at each end by a more solid treatment with small openings and reinforced with pilasters.

  The west elevation will be practically the same with the one exception of the balcony.

  The north and south elevations are more simple and are practically alike, except the courtroom windows of the north will be more extensive than those of the jury rooms on the south. The entire exterior is faced with No 1 Buff Bedford limestone, trimmed with granite base course and terra-cotta cornice; granite and terra-cotta being impervious to water and a much better protection to the walls than stone in these places, and in themselves more enduring and remaining free from weather stains.

  All the window and door glass is American plate and the window glass in the vaults is webbed with wire.

  The roof is that known as flat, having a fall of not more than one-half inch in one foot, and the water is taken down through the middle of the building in cast-iron pipe, concealed in the walls, and connected to the sewer.

  On the ground floor each entrance has a vestibule with double glass panel doors, sidelights and transoms, a hallway eighteen feet wide extending through from the east to the west entrance, and a short cross hall of the same width extending north and south. This story contains offices for the county superintendent, engineer and county attorney, restrooms and toilets for men and women, janitor's work room, storage vault and a fine assembly room.

  The main stairs lead from the hall at the west entrance, starting in the center eight feet wide, to the landing over the vestibule where it divides and leads to the main floor above, on either side, from where it continues to the court room floor in a like manner. Another stairs located in the north section of the cross hall leads to the main floor and a small inside stairs to the attic from the court room floor.

  The main floor is that containing the offices of the county supervisors, auditor, treasurer, recorder and clerk. The supervisors room is located just above the east entrance and joins the auditor's office, which is in the southeast corner and which is also directly connected to the treasurer's office, which is in the south west corner. Each office on this floor has a public reception room, large working record room, private office and closet and toilet equipment. The clerk's office is provided with a lift to the floor above to convey court records, and is directly connected with the courtroom by a private stairs.

  The smoke flue is carried up through the building in a concealed manner at one end of the cross hall, thirty feet from the outside walls, and is balanced on the plan by an elevator shaft extending from the basement to the attic. In connection with this smoke flue will be an induced draft for ventilating the toilet rooms throughout the building.

  In the attic is a storage space, equal to about one-half the ground dimensions of the entire building; the balance of this story is taken up by the upper part of the courtroom and a dome over the corridor.

The corridors are important features to the interior. There are no long halls with bends or turns to hide the location of offices. Every entrance to all the rooms on each floor is located in plain sight, except that to the janitor's work room.

The extreme simplicity of the office arrangement of the main story is easily the feature of the building, being absolutely free from confusing complications. A visitor standing in the center of the corridor is within fifteen feet of the entrance to every office on the floor, and has only to turn about in his tracks to see the one he is looking for.

All the finish of the corridors is of Italian marble, including the door trim, wainscoting and stairs, while the toilet finish is Tennessee pink marble. The stair railings are heavy castings finished in bronze. The only wood in evidence will be the doors themselves; the floors of the corridors, including the public spaces in the offices, are of tile, laid in artistic lines and a seal of the county is inlaid in the center of the main corridor floor in colored hand-cut tile.

The courtroom will be made the principal feature of rich decoration, with beams, cornices and panels, heavy oak trim and a carefully studied color scheme.