The Courthouses, July 4 – 6, 2021
Texas takes pride in its courthouses. There was, in fact, something of a competition among the Texas counties from the late-19th to the early-20th centuries to build the most ornate and impressive buildings. State law requires that counties provide a “convenient building for holding courts,” but beyond that, all communities need a place to meet, store official documents, and conduct government business. These buildings represent a community’s spirit of freedom, self-governance, and pride in their accomplishments.
Personally, I think people were compelled to build them to give a place for pigeons to roost.
For more information on the history of Texas courthouses, I recommend reading County Courthouses in the TSHA Handbook of Texas.
We passed through several Texas county seats along our way to Colorado. Most of the places we visited are located along U.S. Highway 287, which runs between Fort Worth and Amarillo. Our intention was to visit only older courthouses, so we skipped the Wichita County courthouse in Wichita Falls.
The courthouses we visited were, in order:
- Denton County (Denton)
- Wise County (Decatur)
- Clay County (Henrietta)
- Wilbarger County (Vernon)
- Hardeman County (Quanah)
- Childress County (Childress)
- Randall County (Canyon)
- Hartley County (Channing)
Denton, Texas is located just north of the Dallas/Fort Worth area. It sits at the northern intersection of the east and west portions of I-35 (which splits to the north and south of the Metroplex to run through both Dallas and Fort Worth). We had other business in town that day, so we did not go inside. We did, however, walk around its perimeter and take a few photos.
The Denton County Courthouse was constructed in 1896. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The next day, July 5, we stopped in Decatur, which is the seat of Wise County, and visited Trinity Street Coffee Bar Roastaurant, a cool, funky little cafe where we enjoyed some coffee and biscotti.
The Wise County Courthouse was built in 1896 and then modernized in the 1960s. It was undergoing some renovations when we visited. The building was closed (Independence Day holiday), so we did not go inside.
Our next stop was Henrietta, in Clay County. This courthouse was built in 1884. It was here that the first Hereford cattle arrived in Texas. Herefords played a major role in replacing longhorns as the predominant cattle breed in the state.
We drove through Wichita Falls without visiting its courthouse because, as stated earlier, it is a “new” building and not as interesting to us.
The next county seat over was Vernon, in Wilbarger County. Vernon was once the stereotypical wild west cattle town. Agriculture is still the main industry there. Wright bacon is made there, and the famous Waggoner Ranch is nearby. The courthouse was built in 1928.
The town of Quanah, seat of Hardeman County, is named after Quanah Parker, the Last Chief of the Comanches. Part of his amazing story is described in the Handbook of Texas. The Hardeman County courthouse was built in 1908 and restored in 2011.
Further along we came to Childress, the seat of Childress County. Childress is named for George C. Childress, one of the co-authors of the Texas Declaration of Independence. This impressive structure surprised us, as its style resembles something more contemporary, but it was built in 1890. While we were visiting, a local couple drove up and stopped for a little while to visit with us. They told us that the building had recently been renovated, and discussed some of the town’s interesting features. Civic pride!
Our original plan was to make a quick visit to Caprock Canyons State Park and then visit Silverton, Texas, the seat of Briscoe County. By our estimation, though, we would not have enough time to do that and also visit Palo Duro Canyon, which was a higher priority; so, we decided to bypass Caprock Canyons and Silverton and go straight to Palo Duro Canyon. Our visit to Palo Duro is covered in Part III.
The city of Canyon is the seat of Randall County. It was getting dark by the time we arrived, so we were unable to take many pictures. This courthouse was completed in 1909.
Our final courthouse stop was on the following day, July 6. Channing is the seat of Hartley County, located in the Texas Panhandle. The courthouse was built in 1906. While taking pictures on the grounds, the county clerk happened by and invited us inside to look around and take pictures. This is pretty typical, from our experiences. People really do take pride in their communities and their courthouses–and with good reason.
OK, this was a long one, but before you go I want to talk about one more thing.
My friend, Deloris Haley Lindsay, the owner of the Lindsay Ranch, has written a book about her late husband, Alva Clay Lindsay. Good Times, Clay Lindsay: A Good Man from Mason, Texas, chronicles six generations of an extraordinary Texas family. It also tells the story of Alva Clay Lindsay, who lived a long life of nearly 98 years. The book is available in paperback or on Kindle from Amazon.
On February 4, 2021, the Mason County Courthouse in Mason, Texas was destroyed by arson. All proceeds from the book are being donated to the Friends of the Mason County Courthouse for the courthouse reconstruction project. Please consider purchasing a copy. Not only will you have the opportunity to learn some interesting Texas history, but you will also help to preserve it!
