TexasEscapes.com HOME Welcome to Texas Escapes
A magazine written by Texas
Custom Search
New   |   Texas Towns   |   Ghost Towns   |   Counties   |   Trips   |   Features   |   Columns   |   Architecture   |   Images   |   Archives   |   Site Map

Victoria County TX
Victoria County


Texas Towns
A - Z

Victoria Hotels

More Hotels


Texas | Texas Architecture | Texas Courthouses

VICTORIA COUNTY COURTHOUSE
County Seat - Victoria, Texas

Victoria County has had three courthouses:
1849, 1892, and 1967.

Book Hotel Here ›
Victoria Hotels



The 1967 Victoria County Courthouse
- Victoria, Texas


The 1967 modern Victoria County Courthouse

"The modern, concrete and stone courthouse built in 1967 sits to the right of the 1892 courthouse. Visitors must enter through this building to gain access to the inside of the old courthouse." - Terry Jeanson, December, 2004 photo



The 1892 Victoria County Courthouse


Victoria County Courthouse, Victoria Texas
The recently restored 1892 Victoria County Courthouse
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark

TE Photo, 11-01

The 1892 Victoria County Courthouse
- Victoria, Texas


J. Riely Gordon Architect

The courthouse was built between February 15th and December 21st, 1892 and is known as the 1892 Victoria County Courthouse.

J. Riely Gordon designed this one in Romanesque Revival style. Gordon was fired as architect when he failed to live up to his contract which required him to be present every day of construction.

There are similarities with the Fayette County Courthouse in La Grange - built by Gordon the previous year.

The current modern courthouse was completed in 1967.

Portrait of Architect J. Riely Gordon
Portrait of the architect as a young man
TE photo, 2010

Historical Marker
(which replaced the 1961 medallion & plate historical marker)

1892 Victoria County Courthouse

When Don Martín de Leon platted the original townsite of Guadalupe Victoria in 1824, he designated public squares, including one that would later be shared by city and county governments for many years.

Victoria County built its first courthouse, a two-story brick structure, in 1849 on Courthouse Square. The Greek Revival building served the county for many years.

In 1891, under leadership of County Judge J.L. Dupree, commissioners held a competition for new courthouse plans. They awarded the contract to the San Antonio firm of Gordon & Laub, comprised of acclaimed courthouse architect J. Riely Gordon and D.E. Laub. Martin, Byrne & Johnston served as general contractors. Due to Gordon's many pressing commitments, he was discharged in May 1892. The commissioners court relied solely on Martin, Byrne & Johnston, who added elements to Gordon's design. Their work was approved by Eugene T. Heiner, himself a noted architect, and the county accepted the completed building on January 1, 1893. As was his style, Gordon designed a courthouse reflecting the Romanesque Revival architecture of architect Henry Hobson Richardson. He adpated Richardson's ideas to the Texas climate, providing a central atrium to bring light and ventilation into the building, which features a hipped roof with cross gables, corner pinnacles and polychromatic stonework. In the 1940s, the county adapted the atrium to serve as offices. When the need for more space arose in 1961, residents petitioned to save the courthouse, and the county built new facilities on the northeast corner of the square. Work at the turn of the 21st century largely restored the courthouse to its original design.
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1961

Victoria County Courthouse, Victoria, Texas old photo
The courthouse as it appeared in 1939
Photo courtesy TXDoT


Victoria County Courthouse clocktower through the atrium, Victoria Texas
Looking up through the atrium
TE photo, 2010


Victoria County Courthouse tower, Victoria Texas
Victoria County Courthouse clock tower
TE Photos, 11-01


Victoria County district courtroom, Victoria Texas
"The spacious district courtroom in the 1892 courthouse has also been restored to its original condition."
- Terry Jeanson, December, 2004 photo


1892 Victoria County Courthouse artifacts, Victoria Texas
Artifacts recovered from the restoration
TE photo, 2010


1892 Victoria County Courthouse historical marker, Victoria Texas
The 1892 Victoria County Courthouse historical marker
Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, December 2004


Victoria County courthouse, Victoria, Texas
Another view of the restored Victoria County Courthouse
Photo courtesy Steve Stephens, 2002

Book Hotel Here › Victoria Hotels



The 1849 Victoria County Courthouse
- Victoria, Texas

1849 Victoria County Courthouse, Texas old photo
The 1849 Victoria County Courthouse
Click on image to enlarge

Photo courtesy Victoria County Archives

"I would like to share a photograph of the 1849 Victoria County Courthouse. It was built by Richard Owens, and the hope was that this would enable Victoria County to attract a district court. This building survived until January/February of 1892. It was auctioned off to make way for the J. Riely Gordon Courthouse which built between February 15th and December 21st of that year.

You have provided a much-needed service. Texas is a unique and favored place." - Gary Dunnam, Victoria County Heritage Director, February 13, 2007



See Victoria, Texas
Victoria County
More Texas Courthouses

Related Topics:
Texas
Texas Towns
Texas Counties
Texas Architecture
Texas Images

Book Hotel Here:
Victoria Hotels
More Hotels

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Texas Escapes Online Magazine »   Archive Issues » Home »
TEXAS TOWNS & COUNTIES TEXAS LANDMARKS & IMAGES TEXAS HISTORY & CULTURE TEXAS OUTDOORS MORE
Texas Counties
Texas Towns A-Z
Texas Ghost Towns

TEXAS REGIONS:
Central Texas North
Central Texas South
Texas Gulf Coast
Texas Panhandle
Texas Hill Country
East Texas
South Texas
West Texas

Courthouses
Jails
Churches
Schoolhouses
Bridges
Theaters
Depots
Rooms with a Past
Monuments
Statues

Gas Stations
Post Offices
Museums
Water Towers
Grain Elevators
Cotton Gins
Lodges
Stores
Banks

Vintage Photos
Historic Trees
Cemeteries
Old Neon
Ghost Signs
Signs
Murals
Gargoyles
Pitted Dates
Cornerstones
Then & Now

Columns: History/Opinion
Texas History
Small Town Sagas
Black History
WWII
Texas Centennial
Ghosts
People
Animals
Food
Music
Art

Books
Cotton
Texas Railroads

Texas Trips
Texas Drives
Texas State Parks
Texas Rivers
Texas Lakes
Texas Forts
Texas Trails
Texas Maps
USA
MEXICO
HOTELS

Site Map
About Us
Privacy Statement
Disclaimer
Contributors
Staff
Contact Us

 
Website Content Copyright Texas Escapes LLC. All Rights Reserved