Cass Gilbert Gilbert was a conservative who believed architecture should reflect historic traditions and the established social order. His design of the new Supreme Court building (1935), with its classical lines and small size, contrasted sharply with the large federal buildings going up along the National Mall in Washington, D.C., which he disliked. Heilbrun says "Gilbert's pioneering buildings injected vitality into skyscraper design, and his 'Gothic skyscraper,' epitomized by the Woolworth Building, profoundly influenced architects during the first decades of the twentieth century." Christen and Flanders note that his reputation among architectural critics went into eclipse during the age of modernism, but
Cass County Courthouse (Iowa) wood tones and Art Deco ornamentation. The exterior of the adjoining correctional facility is composed of similar colored brick as the courthouse, and it has no windows. The building is located on the courthouse square to the south of the central business district, where the previous courthouse was also located. There are three other elements that are contributing properties on the courthouse's nomination to the National Register of Historic Places. The square itself is a contributing site, what is believed to be the original flagpole is a contributing object, and the two-bay garage is another contributing building Cass County Courthouse