Old Harrison County Courthouse (Texas) facts for kids
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Harrison County Courthouse
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Old Harrison County Courthouse in 2017
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 Harrison County Courthouse
Location in Texas
Harrison County Courthouse
Location in the United States
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| Location | Public Square, Marshall, Texas |
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| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1900 |
| Built by | Sonnefield and Emmins |
| Architect | James Riely Gordon, C.G. Lancaster |
| Architectural style | Neo-Italian Renaissance |
| NRHP reference No. | 77001450 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | August 16, 1977 |
The Old Harrison County Courthouse is a very famous and beautiful building in Marshall, Texas. You can find it right in the middle of Whetstone Square. Many people think it's one of the most admired buildings in all of Texas! It's like a special symbol for Marshall and often shows up in travel guides about East Texas.
This old courthouse is so important that it's listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This means it's officially recognized as a valuable historical site. For many years, from 1964 to 2000, it was home to the Harrison County Historical Museum. It's also famous for being the place where some of the very first sit-ins happened in Texas, which were peaceful protests for civil rights.
Building Design
The Old Harrison County Courthouse was designed by a famous architect named James Riely Gordon. Another local architect, C. G. Lancaster, helped supervise the building's construction.
The Amazing Dome
The most special part of the courthouse is its amazing dome. It sits high above a four-level rotunda, which is a fancy round room. The rotunda has a "false dome" inside, which looks like a dome but isn't the main outer one.
Between this inner false dome and the big outer dome, there's a cool clock system. This clock has four faces, one for each direction, and it was recently fixed up. The outer dome is held up by six strong walls that form a hexagon shape if you look down from above.
On the outside of the dome, each wall has a "false portico" (which looks like a porch with columns). Where the sides of the hexagon meet, there are V-shaped brick pillars. In between these pillars, you'll see three marble columns. These columns are on each side of the windows that let light into the rotunda below. The light shines through colorful stained glass in the false dome.
Dome Details and Lady Justice
A decorative ledge, called a cornice, sticks out from the bottom of the outer dome. Above this cornice is a balustrade, which is like a fancy railing. This railing also forms a hexagon shape. At each corner of the hexagon, there are statues of eagles.
The outer dome rises up from this cornice. On the north, south, east, and west sides of the dome, there are big clock faces. These clocks stay straight even as the dome curves.
On top of the outer dome, there's a small tower that looks a bit like the top of the United States Capitol building. This is called a "false belfry" because it looks like a bell tower but doesn't have bells.
At the very top of the belfry stands a 6-foot-tall (1.8 m) statue of Lady Justitia. She's also known as Lady Justice. She has the usual features you'd expect: a blindfold (to show fairness), scales (to weigh evidence), and a raised sword (to show power). But what makes this statue special is that she also has a set of wings!
