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The
1884 Dimmit County Courthouse today
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, January 2005 |
Dimmit County
CourthouseDate
- 1884
Original Architect - J.C. Breeding
Original Style - Italianate
Style after 1927 remodeling - Classical Revival
Material - Stone
See Dimmit
County Courthouse Historical Marker
Dimmitt
County Courthouse HistoryBy
Terry
Jeanson
Although the county was officially organized in
1880, plans for the building of a permanent courthouse did not begin until the
end of 1883. Alfred Giles was selected to design the courthouse, but the contractors
bids for his plans were deemed too expensive. The court decided, instead, to hire
San Antonio architects J.C. Breeding
& Sons. After its completion in 1884, it was obvious to many that the courthouse
reflected the design Alfred Giles had submitted with cost-cutting omissions, such
as a tower over the main entrance on the south side. Although it can’t be proven,
as neither of the architect’s original plans survive, J.C. Breeding & Sons most
likely based their design on Giles’ plans. This led Giles to sue Dimmit County
in October of 1884 and the suit was settled out of court for $400.00.
The
1884 courthouse remained virtually unchanged for many years until the 1920s when
the growing county needed a new, larger courthouse. San
Antonio architect Henry T. Phelps, who had already designed courthouses in
the nearby counties of Frio, Atascosa and Jim Hogg, was hired for the job in December
of 1925, but instead of demolishing the old courthouse, it was decided to enlarge
it. The features of the original Italianate style building, such as the hipped,
mansard roof and double-gallery wood porch at the south side entrance, were removed
and the north and south sides of the building were extended. The main entrance
to the building was moved to the west side with the addition of four ionic columns
and a recessed porch. A cornice with dentils, an entablature with St. John’s crosses
ornamenting it and a parapet over the main entrance with the county name, completed
the transformation of the building to a Classical Revival style. The St. John’s
cross motif can also be seen in the upper part of the second floor windows. The
center of the rear of the building and a portion of the wall inside the recessed
front porch survive from the original 1884 structure. The building’s new cornerstone
was laid on September 29, 1926 and the building was completed on March 29, 1927.
Very few changes were made to the courthouse after 1927. Some of these
changes included new exterior doors, repairs to the leaking roof and the laying
of terrazzo on the ground floor. In 1995, a three foot section of the deteriorating
cornice fell from the roof over the north side entrance. This resulted in an emergency
repair grant from the Texas Historical Commission in 1997. An inspection of the
building at that time revealed many problems due to age and improper maintenance.
In February of 2002, the county was awarded a grant from the Texas Historical
Commission for $2,403,913.00 for the restoration of the courthouse to its 1927
condition. The work was completed and the courthouse was rededicated on November
18, 2004.
Terry
Jeanson,
July 26, 2008
Sources: Master Plan for the Restoration of the Dimmit
County Courthouse by Frank Architects, Inc., Laredo, Texas, March 2000. |
 |
Dimmit
County Courthouse as it appeared in 1939
Photo courtesy TXDoT |
| The
1884 Dimmit County Courthouse before the 1927 remodeling.
Photo courtesy THC, circa 1900 |
Dimmit
County Courthouse Historical Marker
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, January 2005 |
Dimmit County Courthouse back view
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, January 2005 |
Ionic columns at the front entrance
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, April 2007 |
The
restored District Courtroom
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, April 2007 |
Dimmit
County Courthouse detail
Photo by John Troesser, 2002 | |
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