|
The east side
entrance to the 1977 Nueces County courthouse. The surrounding base
of the building contains the county offices while the tower houses
the county and district courtrooms.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
The Present
Nueces County courthouse
Date - 1977
Architect - A JOINT VENTURE: Smyth & Smyth, Kipp & Winston, Wisznia
& Petersen, Bennett, Martin & Solka
Style - Modern
Material - Concrete and steel |
West side view
of the 1977 Nueces County courthouse.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
Dedication plaque
for the current 1977 Nueces County courthouse.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
1977 Nueces County
courthouse
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, August 2006 |
Nueces County
Courthouse History
|
The 1892 jail
(left), 1853 courthouse (middle)
and the 1875 courthouse (right.)
1905
postcard courtesy of THC |
THE
COURTHOUSES OF NUECES COUNTY
When Nueces
County was officially organized in 1846, cut from San Patricio
County, it stretched south of Bexar
County, west to the Rio Grande and east to the Gulf of Mexico.
The county seat of Corpus Christi
was founded by Henry Lawrence Kinney (namesake of Kinney County) when
he established a trading post in the area in 1839. County officials
had been meeting in each others homes until the first courthouse was
planned in 1852.* A 2-story building
of shellcrete, a cross between adobe and concrete, was designed by
surveyor Felix von Blucher. Construction began in 1853 under contractor
J. B. McGowan on three lots sold to the county by Henry Kinney. Construction
progressed slowly and the contractor was replaced by James McMartin
in 1854. The building was completed in 1856 and cost the county $4,000.
By 1875, the county had outgrown this courthouse and a second one
was constructed on the north side of the first one. The 1875 courthouse
was two stories and built in a Greek Revival & Italianate style with
concrete blocks and a wooden portico and staircase at a cost of $15,000.
This courthouse was referred to as the “Hollub Courthouse” after the
engineer who designed it. The first courthouse continued to be used
as office space for county officials and as a jury room. In 1892,
a two-story brick jail, designed by J. Riely Gordon and Laub, was
built to the south of the 1853 and 1875 courthouses.
The county’s continued growth led to the building of a third
courthouse to be built on the same lots as the earlier courthouses
and 1892 jail, which were demolished. Completed in 1914 at a cost
of $250,000, the third
Nueces County courthouse was designed by Harvey L. Page, a Washington,
D.C. born architect who relocated to San
Antonio around 1900. The Classical Revival style T-shaped structure
has a six story projecting entrance on the east side with four story
wings on the north and south sides. It was built of stone with a brick
veneer and originally had a red tile roof. The courthouse also contains
terra cotta trim and statuary. The top two stories of the central
section contained the county jail which was used until 1977. A six
story addition built in the early 1930s, extending from the west side,
was built with the same materials and gave the building a cruciform
shape. A 1960s addition on the northeast corner and later additions
in the 1970s have since been demolished. In 1972, plans were being
made to construct a new courthouse and jail in the downtown area southwest
of the 1914 courthouse. Groundbreaking began in 1974 and the fourth
courthouse was completed in 1977. The 1914 courthouse was abandoned
at that time and has sat vacant since then. A grant from the Texas
Historical Commission in 2003 enabled the county to restore the exterior
of the south wing of the 1914 courthouse, which was completed in 2006,
but the rest of the building remains in a deteriorated state.
According to an article from the Corpus Christi Caller-Times dated
August 23, 2011, an engineering study found the 1914 courthouse to
be “structurally unsound and in danger of collapse.” This led the
Nueces County Judge and Commissioners to pass a resolution to demolish
the building. When the county accepted grant money from the Texas
Historical Commission for restoration, it agreed to protect the building
from demolition until at least 2027, but the Nueces County Judge and
Commissioners is now trying to have that agreement with the Texas
Historical Commission rescinded so it can proceed with the demolition
of the building.
*Note - According the Texas Historical
Commission’s County Atlas, a courthouse was built sometime in the
1840s with the following courthouses constructed in 1856, 1877, 1914
& 1977.
Sources:
Historical and biographical information from The Handbook of Texas
Online.
Courthouse history from the Texas Historical Commission County Atlas
at http://atlas.thc.state.tx.us/shell-desig.htm and
The Corpus Christi Caller-Times, “Corpus Christi History by Murphy
Givens,” April 4, 2001
Jail information from “Wanted: Historic County Jails of Texas” by
Edward A. Blackburn, Jr., 2006. |
The 1914 Nueces
County Courthouse
|
The 1914 Nueces
County Courthouse as it appeared in 1939
Photo
courtesy TXDoT |
Historical marker:
THE NUECES
COUNTY COURTHOUSE OF 1914
In 1853 lawlessness
in Nueces County,
which covered most of the area from Corpus
Christi to the Mexican border, prompted the construction of
the first county courthouse on this block. Three lots were purchased
for $300 from Corpus Christi
founder, Henry Lawrence Kinney (1814-1865). A second courthouse
was built in the mid-1870's beside the first.
Under the administration of county Judge Walter F. Timon (1872-1952),
this neo-classical structure was completed in 1914 at a cost of
$250,000. The architect, Harvey L. Page (1859-1934) of Washington,
D.C., designed the International and Great Northern Railroad station
in San Antonio
and Laguna Gloria in Austin,
home of former Corpus Christi
resident Clara Driscoll.
Additions were
made to the buildings in the 1930's and 1960's. Courtrooms and offices
were on the first four floors. The top two floors, separated from
the rest of the building by an air space to eliminate noise, served
as the jail. In addition to government offices, apartments were
provided until the 1950's for the jailer and other county officials.
During storms which almost leveled the city, hundreds of refugees
sought shelter here. In 1977 county offices moved to a new
courthouse building.
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1978
|
 |
The 1914 Nueces
County courthouse
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
Photo of the
1914 Nueces County courthouse from a nearby parking garage. The restored
south side wing is on the left side of the picture.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
East side entrance
to the courthouse.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
East side entrance
seen from a park across Mesquite Street.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
Northeast corner
of the building. The 1960s addition to the northeast corner has since
been removed.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
The east side
projecting entrance.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
Carved figures
at the roofline of the east side projecting entrance. They represent
the four virtues: Courage, Temperance, Wisdom and Justice. The figure
on the bottom left is missing a hand and the face has crumbled away.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
South side entrance
portico with caryatids.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
Detail of one
of the caryatids at the south side entrance.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
Another view
of the 1914 Nueces County Courthouse
1925
postcard courtesy of THC |
Picture of the
first two Nueces County courthouses from a display case in the current
courthouse.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
Picture of the
1892 Nueces County jail from a display case in the current courthouse.
Photo courtesy Terry
Jeanson, May 2012 |
|
|
The
1914 Nueces County Courthouse today
(Below Left) Courthouse left side
(Below Right) Courthouse north side
TE photos, 2001 |
|
|
The
1914 Nueces County Courthouse detail
TE
photos, 2001 |
|
|
HOME
