|
Houston County
Courthouse
Recorded
Texas Historic Landmark - 2000
Photo courtesy
Terry Jeanson, December 2015 |
The Present
Houston County Courthouse
- Crockett, Texas
Date - 1939
Architect - Blum E. Hester
Style - Moderne; Art Deco
Material - Stone
401 E. Houston Ave., Crockett, TX |
Houston County
Courthouse as it appeared in 1939
Photo courtesy TXDoT |
Houston County
courthouse historical marker
Photo courtesy
Terry Jeanson, December 2015 |
Historical Marker
Houston County
Courthouse
In early 1938,
the Houston County
commissioners court, with County Judge B. F. Bradley presiding, began
making plans for construction of the county's fifth courthouse. Built
in 1939 with funds from the federal Public Works Administration, the
building was designed by Houston
County native Blum Hester and constructed by Eckert-Fair Construction
Co. of Dallas. The Moderne
style courthouse with Art Deco features is a reflection of popular
architectural trends of the 1930s and remains a center of politics
and government for the county's citizens.
Recorded
Texas Historic Landmark - 2000 |
Southwest corner
of the courthouse
Photo courtesy
Terry Jeanson, December 2015 |
Courthous east
side entrance
Photo courtesy
Terry Jeanson, December 2015 |
Crime doesn't
pay (but you get to wear some pretty nice clothes)
Photo Courtesy Barclay
Gibson, April 2006 |
 |
Historical Marker
(west side of Courthouse Square)
Five Courthouses
of Houston County
On June 12, 1837,
President Sam Houston
authorized the formation of Houston
County, the first newly created county in the Republic of Texas.
Andrew W. Gossett (1812-1890) donated land, which included this square,
for the townsite. He and his father, Elijah, both veterans of the
Battle of San
Jacinto, named the county for Sam
Houston, and the county seat for David Crockett, a former Tennessee
friend.
The first county courthouse, a log structure which served as a fortress
during Indian attacks, was in use at this location by 1838. A brick
building, which replaced the first courthouse in 1851, was destroyed
by a fire of mysterious origin in 1865. County business was conducted
in the L.E. Downes building on the southwest corner of the square
until a two-story frame structure was finished in 1869. A jail addition
burned in 1871 while it was under construction. The third courthouse
and jail burned in 1882.
The fourth courthouse, completed at this site in 1883, was razed in
1938. While this three-story structure was under construction, county
business was conducted in the Crockett Hotel. In 1975 the third-floor
jail was moved to a separate building and the fifth Houston County
courthouse was remodeled.
(1979) |
1883 Houston
County Courthouse
- Crockett, Texas
Architect - Wesley
Clark Dodson
Material - Brick
Description - Two story with clock tower
Razed in 1938 |
Oil painting
of 1883 Houston County courthouse
displayed on second floor of the current courthouse.
Artist - Norma B. Murray.
Photo courtesy
Terry Jeanson, December 2015 |
Houston County
Courthouse
From Oddities
by Mike Cox
"Even during the Depression, it’s hard to imagine a 55-year-old
building being sold for only $1.
But that’s what the Commissioner’s Court of Houston County sold
their 1883-vintage courthouse for back in 1939. There was a catch,
of course.
The new owner of the structure had to agree to tear it down immediately
so make room for construction of a new courthouse. The county found
a buyer, who presumably recouped his investment by selling material
salvaged from the building, and the building was razed.
County officials conducted their business in the nearby Crockett
Hotel until the new courthouse was completed. That one, a
stone, Moderne-style structure which cost $200,000 to build,
still stands on the square in Crockett."... more
|
1869 Houston
County Courthouse
- Crockett, Texas
Architect Contractor - J. H. Burnett
Material - wood
Description - Two story. Courtroom on upper floor.
Destroyed by fire in November 13, 1882 |
1851 Houston
County Courthouse
- Crockett, Texas
Material - Brick
Description - 2 story
Destroyed in February 2, 1865 |
1838 Houston
County Courthouse
- Crockett, Texas
Architect - John Jacob Erwin
Contractor - John Erwin
Style - Vernacular
Material - Log
Description - Fort like structure
Demolished in 1850 for new courthouse. |
|
|
HOME
