Dwight James Baum designed the Sarasota County Courthouse in the Mediterranean Revival style, here in Sarasota, Florida. Designed by architect Dwight James Baum in the Mediterranean Revival style, this courthouse was built in 1926–1927 by Stevenson and Cameron, Inc. of New York. The County Commission had planned a courthouse since late 1924, after the county separated from Manatee County in July 1921.
Charles and Edith Ringling conveyed the land for the building, and in March 1925 the County Commission hired Dwight James Baum as the architect. In September 1925 the commission awarded the construction contract to Stevenson and Cameron, Inc. of New York. What you see around you is the result of those decisions and dates: a deliberately styled public building from the 1920s that later gained recognition.
On March 22, 1984 the courthouse was added to the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Sarasota Multiple Resource Area. Today the county also uses the Judge Lynn N. Silvertooth Judicial Center in Sarasota and the South County Courthouse in Venice for county court activities, but this building remains a landmark of its era. Notice the Mediterranean Revival details Dwight James Baum drew, framed by the plaza and surrounding streets.