LAGRANGE, Ky. — Built in 1828, LaGrange, Kentucky is home to the second oldest standing courthouses in the state.
The building is now in the final stages of its move before a 47,620 square foot addition gets added on.
“It means a lot, you see a lot of people breaking down older structures and it’s nice to see they are willing to keep the integrity of the older building,” LaGrange resident, Jaima James said.
Bringing plenty of residents to watch history in the making, including James and her daughters Everly and Quinn.
“That’s one of the reasons why I’m here too. I was like man, I gotta see this thing move. It’s pretty sweet,” James said.
The process involved lifting the 820 ton structure before starting the sliding process, moving the building 24 feet North, 26’4 feet West, and 64’10 feet South to its ultimate resting place.
Next week Edwards Rigging and Moving will lower the structure on its new foundation.
“We’re using hydraulic push rams to slide it along its path, those arms on those push rams extend three feet so for full extension it’s about 15 minutes, once they extend out all the way, we retract them and start the process over so we’ll be out here for hours today,” Danny Cain, director of safety and risk management for Edwards Moving and Rigging said.
A day James and her girls will look back on as they stood in the center of town where history was made.
“I think it will be pretty cool, we plan on being here for a while and she’ll be able to look back on this little video and be like I was there, I was two probably don’t remember it but she’ll be able to see it,” James said.
The new Oldham County Judicial Center is expected to be complete in Aug. 2024.