Pioneer Courthouse

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Pioneer Courthouse in Portland, Oregon, is one of the buildings used by the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals based in San Francisco. It is the oldest federal building in the Pacific Northwest.

By local standards it is old. Construction started in 1869 and was completed in 1875. A recent renovation finished in 2005 has left the courthouse’s plain style and clean lines in place, much like other early western frontier government buildings.

Today Jim and I walked up to the security officer standing outside the court and asked if there were tours. He said, “Sure, the DIY kind.” Then he gave some simple instructions for a self-guided tour of the entire building including the rooftop cupola.

“If the door is open,” he said, “you can go inside and take pictures.” But closed doors inside the building are out-of-bounds and no photos are allowed of staff. Easy enough.

And here is what we saw inside the open doors.