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The 1936 Grayson
County courthouse
1939 photo courtesy TXDoT |
Date - 1936
Architect - Voelcker and Dixon
Style - Moderne
Material - Concrete and limestone |
The 1936 Grayson
County courthouse today
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, June 2007 |
Historical Marker:
Courthouses
of Grayson County
From pioneer log
cabins to a native Texas limestone structure, Grayson County courthouses
have taken many shapes and sizes since the county's establishment
in 1846.
The first courthouse, a frame building on bald prairie a few miles
west of the current county seat, was completed in 1847 for a cost
of $232. It served for one year, until Sherman
was relocated to this site, and the commissioners court ordered the
construction of a log cabin on the southeast corner of the square.
Neither it, nor the third courthouse (a two-story frame building on
the north side of the square), nor the 1853 brick fourth courthouse
were in service for any substantial period of time. An 1859 courthouse,
intended to provide the county with a large and structurally sound
facility, fell into disuse by the early 1870s. Thus, by the time the
Houston & Texas Central Railroad reached Sherman
in 1873, Grayson County
had seen five courthouses in fewer than 40 years.
The coming of the railroad was a boon to the local economy, and the
availability of better building materials led to the construction
of the majestic 1876
courthouse - a two-story edifice with tower supporting a cupola
containing a clock and a bell - which served the county until it burned
in 1930. Due to the Depression, it was six years before the current
limestone courthouse was built, in part with federal grants and loans.
As centers of politics and government, Grayson
County's seven courthouses have played a significant role in the
county's history. |
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Another view
of the 1936 Grayson County courthouse
Old postcard courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/ |
1876 Grayson
County Courthouse and Confederate Monument
Postcard courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/ |
| Postcard
courtesy www.rootsweb.com/ %7Etxpstcrd/ |
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