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McLennan County
Courthouse
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, February 2005 |
The Present
McLennan County Courthouse
- Waco, Texas
Date - 1901
Architect - J. Reily Gordon
Material - Steel, limestone, concrete, marble, Texas red granite base
Style - The Beaux-Arts style building is said to have been inspired
by St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome. Noteworthy details include a series
of eagles spaced along the base of the dome. |
McLennan County
Courthouse as it appeared in 1939
Photo courtesy TXDoT |
Historical marker
On Courthouse Square in Waco
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, November 2004 |
Historical Marker:
McLennan County
Courthouse
Seat of Justice
for county organized in 1850 by founders of Waco,
to give the young city added strength. Ironically, until the early
20th century, county oustripped city in prosperity.
This courthouse (the county's fourth) was built during peak of central
Texas cotton wealth. The renaissance
revival design by J.Riely Gordon of Dallas
uses steel, limestone, concrete, and marble, with Texas red granite
in the rusticated base. Housed here are numerous state, district,
and county courts, with a law library open to all citizens.
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark |
Courthouse facing
Washington Avenue
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, February 2005 |
The Courthouse
entrance
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, February 2005 |
| "On
top of the courthouse's dome is a small lantern, crowned by a statue
of Themis, the Greek goddess of divine law and justice. The statue
is holding the scales of Justice in her left hand and the hilt of
a sword in her right. The blade of the sword fell off after a storm
and was never replaced." - Terry
Jeanson, February 2005 photo |
The Courthouse
east wing. Notice the Texas red granite in the courthouse's base.
- Terry
Jeanson, February 2005 photo |
 |
Historical Marker
Text
On Courthouse Square, Waco
The Courthouses
of McLennan County
In January 1850,
the Texas Legislature created McLennan
County from portions of Robertson
and Milam counties,
naming it for Neil McLennan, who had settled along the South Bosque
River. In September of that year, the Commissioners Court began preparations
for constructing a two-story log court building, which was completed
in August 1851. During construction, county judge R.E.B. Baylor held
court in a private schoolhouse.
By 1856, the county needed a larger courthouse. In August, they levied
taxes to raise funds for a brick building, and Robert H. Smith and
N. M. Saunders served as contractors. Because of problems with the
structure, including two fatalities due to faulty second floor doors,
the county built a new courthouse and jail in the mid-1870s. Noted
architect W.C. Dodson designed the structure, completed in July 1877
by builders J.W. Mann & Bro., and Trice & Harris. Dodson's design,
a two-story brick building, featured a Mansard roof and clock tower,
and was celebrated for its beauty. By 1900, however, it also became
too small for the county's needs. Dodson recommended that the county
accept the plans of James Riely Gordon, renowned throughout Texas
and other parts of the nation for his courthouse designs. The Commissioners
Court awarded the construction contract to Tom Lovell of Denton
and accepted the finished building on March 3, 1902.
One hundred years later, in September 2002, McLennan
County residents celebrated the centennial of their fourth courts
building, a magnificent Renaissance Revival courthouse crowned with
statues of eagles as well as Themis, Justitia and Liberty. Today,
the building remains an emblem of pride and justice, a link to the
county's history and a symbol of its future. |
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