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

TX Courthouses
Texas Courthouses

Counties
Texas Counties


Texas Towns
A - Z
|
Wheeler Hotels

More Hotels

 


Texas | Architecture | Courthouses

WHEELER COUNTY COURTHOUSE
County Seat - Wheeler, Texas

Wheeler County has had three ( see Note) courthouses:
1880, 1888, and 1925

Book Hotel Here › Wheeler Hotels

1925 Wheeler County Courthouse, Wheeler Texas
" Wheeler County courthouse was restored and rededicated in 2004."
- Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, September, 2007

The Present Wheeler County Courthouse
- Wheeler, Texas

Date - 1925
Architect - E. H. Eads
Style - Classical Revival
Material - Brick
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark

Mobeetie was the original county seat.
The county seat was moved to Wheeler in 1908.

1925 Wheeler County Courthouse, Wheeler  Texas old photo
The 1925 Wheeler County Courthouse as it appeared in 1939
Photo courtesy of TXDoT

1925 Wheeler County Courthouse historical marker, Wheeler  Texas
Historical marker on the west side of the courthouse.
Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, September, 2007

Historical Marker:

Wheeler County Courthouse

Named for Royal T. Wheeler, an early Texas jurist, Wheeler County was created by the Texas State Legislature in 1876. In 1879 the county was organized and Mobeetie (then known as Sweetwater), the only town in the county, became the county seat. A stone courthouse was erected from locally quarried materials in 1880. That structure was replaced with a wood frame building in 1888.

As the area grew and its center changed, the town of Wheeler was officially designated the county seat in 1908. The wooden courthouse was moved to this site, but by 1913 it was too small to serve the county's needs. A separate building was erected on the southwest corner of the courthouse square that year to house the county clerk's office; it was enlarged in 1923. A bond election held in 1925 set aside funds for a new courthouse. The 1888 courthouse was sold to Sheriff Riley Price, who dismantled it and used the lumber to build barns on his ranch east of town.

Designed by E. H. Eads of Shamrock, the edifice was built by local contractors Hughes and Campbell. Featuring Palladian windows and Corinthian columns characteristic of the Classical Revival style, the 1925 Wheeler County Courthouse typifies the favored style of American public buildings of its time. The 1913 county clerk's office was torn down in 1929; curbs and sidewalks were in place after the summer of 1930. Gas heat and a water system were installed in 1926. The streets on all four sides of the courthouse were paved in 1944 and the surrounding streets in the late 1970s. Standing prominently on the town square, the historic Wheeler County Courthouse continues to serve as the center of local government.
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark-2000

NOTE:
"The updated Kelsey and Dyal courthouse book lists four courthouses for Wheeler County with the dates of 1880 and 1888 (in Mobeetie) and 1907 and 1925 (in Wheeler.)

The historical marker specifically states that the 1888 courthouse was moved to Wheeler but replaced in 1913. So it seems that there are four courthouses dated 1880, 1888, 1913 and 1925.

However, the historical marker also states that the 1913 building (enlarged in 1923) was used as the county clerk's office, so it wasn't technically a new courthouse, just an annex. The 1888 courthouse wasn't dismantled until the 1925 courthouse was being built. So, technically, there were only three courthouses. 1880, 1888 and 1925." - Terry Jeanson

1925 Wheeler County Courthouse and gazebo, Wheeler Texas
Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, September, 2007

1925 Wheeler County Courthouse side view, Wheeler Texas
More views of the 1925 Wheeler County courthouse
Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, September, 2007

1925 Wheeler County Courthouse entrance, Wheeler Texas
Wheeler County courthouse entrance
Photo courtesy Terry Jeanson, September, 2007

Texas - 1888 Wheeler County courthouse
"The 1888 Wheeler County courthouse in the first county seat of Mobeetie was moved to the town of Wheeler when Wheeler was elected as the new county seat in 1908. This picture of the 1888 wooden courthouse is hanging in the district clerk's office in the current courthouse."
- Terry Jeanson, September, 2007

Wheeler County courthouse & Texas 1936 Centennial Marker
Wheeler County 1936 Centennial Highway Marker
in front of Wheeler County Courthouse

Photo courtesy Barclay Gibson, December 2008

See
Wheeler, Texas
Wheeler County
More Texas Courthouses


Related Topics:

Texas
Texas Towns
Texas Counties
Texas Architecture
Texas Images

Book Hotel Here
Wheeler 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