When it was built in 1832, Newark's third courthouse was a source of pride, and it would continue to be for several decades.  In 1861 the Civil War broke out, and American cultural production-the creation of new works of art and architecture-was temporarily halted for four years while the nation was consumed by war.  However, the years that followed the war were a period of unprecedented rapid economic growth for America, particularly in the North.  Fortunes were made in industry: railroad, oil, steel, and coal.  Mark Twain called these years "The Gilded Age," because everything in America seemed to be covered by a fine layer of gold and ostentatious decoration.   Trends in architecture reflected this changing world view.  Greek Revival architecture, which relied on strength and simplicity, became unpopular.  Some people in Newark began to consider their courthouse odd-looking and old-fashioned.  There were grumblings that the courthouse was a blight on the city.  

Fire!
Around midnight on the evening of April 3, 1875, the third courthouse caught on fire.  The fire, which originated in the office of the Auditor, was believed by many to be the work of an arsonist.  We will almost certainly never know for sure if this was the case, but no one was ever found guilty of committing such a crime.   However, it is important to remember that in those days, buildings were not held to the same degree of fire safety which we now expect, and fires were a fairly regular-if disastrous and often fatal-occurrence.  In any case, the courthouse had served the public well for over forty years, and they were by that time apparently glad to be rid of it.  

Tragically, just after the fire, a few young boys were playing in remaining structure of the burned courthouse when one was struck by a piece of falling debris.  The little boy died, making his the only life lost-directly or indirectly-in either major fire at the site of the courthouse.  The other major loss from the 1875 fire was not one of life, but of information.  Many public records were lost in the blaze, including birth and death records, a blow to the preservation of Licking County's history.

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Sources:

Brister, E. M. P. Centennial History of the City of Newark and Licking County, Ohio. Chicago: S. J. Clarke Pub. Co, 1909.
"Court House Burned." The Newark Advocate, April 4, 1875.  
Edwards, Rebecca.  New Spirits: Americans in the Gilded Age, 1865-1905.  New York:  Oxford University Press, 2006.
"Fire destroyed first County Courthouse." The Licking Countian, March 2, 1989.
"History of the Licking County Courthouses of Newark, Ohio."  Licking County Historical Society.  Baker Video & Film Production, 1997.
Huff, W.T. "Licking County Courthouses, part 1." The Licking County Historical Society Quarterly.  Vol.7, no. 2: 1997.
"Newark's centerpiece." The Newark Advocate, November 19, 1989.
Roth, Leland M. A Concise History of American Architecture. 1st ed. New York: Harper & Row, 1979.
Twain, Mark, and Charles Dudley Warner.  The Gilded Age, a Tale of To-Day.  New York:Harper, 1915.