Wilkes County Courthouse (Georgia) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Wilkes County Courthouse
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 Location in Georgia (U.S. state)
Location in the United States
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| Location | 23 East Court Street Washington, Georgia |
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| Built | 1904 |
| Architect | Frank Pierce Milburn |
| Architectural style | Romanesque Revival Richardsonian Romanesque (Primary influences) |
| MPS | Georgia County Courthouses TR |
| NRHP reference No. | 80001267 |
| Added to NRHP | September 18, 1980 |
The Wilkes County Courthouse is an old and important building in Washington, Georgia. It has a cool clock tower! This building is where the government of Wilkes County works. It's also where the Superior Court (a type of court) holds its meetings. The courthouse was finished in 1904. It became a special historic place on September 18, 1980, when it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
Contents
A Look Back: The Courthouse Story
Early Days of Justice
Wilkes County, Georgia was one of the first counties in Georgia. It was created way back in 1777. At first, it was mostly a wild area with only a few people. There were no proper buildings for the government.
When the first court meetings happened in 1779, they were held in someone's house. The court moved around a lot in those early years.
In 1780, the Georgia government decided to create the town of Washington. This town would be the main place for the county's government. This meant the court could finally have a regular spot. The first steady place for the court was a room in a local tavern. This tavern was on the same land where today's courthouse now stands.
Past Courthouses of Wilkes County
By 1785, Wilkes County got its first real courthouse. It was a simple building made of logs. A plaque on the lawn of the current courthouse tells us about these old buildings.
After only one year, the log courthouse was replaced. A new courthouse made of clapboard (wooden planks) was built. This one served the county from 1786 to 1804. Both the log and clapboard courthouses were in what is now the public square in Washington.
The next courthouse, built in 1804, was a two-story house. It used to belong to a man named Major Ferdinand Phinizy. He sold it to the county. This building was the courthouse from 1804 to 1817.
In 1817, a new brick courthouse was built. It was designed in the Federal style. This building was special because it was the first courthouse in Georgia to have a clock tower! It stood in the center of Washington's public square. This courthouse was used until 1904, when the current building replaced it.
The Courthouse Location
In the 1890s, people in Washington hoped that railroads would come to Wilkes County. This made them want to improve the town. They thought new buildings would help attract railroad companies.
Replacing the old 1817 courthouse became one of these big projects. The county bought the land across from their old courthouse. They planned to build the new one there.
An old three-story building from 1824, called the Heard House, was already on that land. This building was very important in history. Near the end of the American Civil War, the President of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis, held the very last meeting of his government there. This meeting happened on May 4, 1865. At this meeting, the Confederate government officially ended.
Even with this unique history, the Heard House was torn down to make room for the new courthouse. Today, a plaque and a stone monument in front of the courthouse remember these important events.
Building Design: Architecture
The Wilkes County, Georgia Courthouse and its clock tower were designed by an architect named Frank Pierce Milburn. He was inspired by the Richardsonian Romanesque and Romanesque Revival styles of building design.
The courthouse was built between 1903 and 1904. It uses sand-colored bricks with red bricks and natural stone for accents. The whole building cost about $40,000 to build back then.
The original design of the courthouse had many fancy details. There was detailed work around the roof and beautiful decorations all over it. The Gothic-style clock tower was very tall, almost doubling the building's height.
Sadly, a fire in 1958 badly damaged the top half of the courthouse. The fire destroyed these original roof and tower features. For over 30 years after the fire, the building had no tower and a flat roof.
In 1989, a restoration project began. They rebuilt a roof that looked similar to the original. They also added a new clock tower, but it was much shorter than the first one. Because of a limited budget, the very detailed decorations from the 1904 design were not added back.
An important African American contractor named Monroe Morton from Athens, Georgia helped build the courthouse.
The Wilkes County Courthouse was chosen to be on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places (NRHP). It was part of a larger group of buildings called a Multiple Property Submission (MPS). This group included 52 courthouses from Georgia. They were chosen because they were important for their architecture, communication, economy, law, and government history. All the courthouses in this group were added to the NRHP on September 18, 1980.
Building Changes Over Time
A new jail section was added to the back of the courthouse in 1911. A plaque on the jail remembers the first hanging that happened there. This event took place on December 5, 1911, even before the jail was officially opened in January 1912.
Another large addition was built onto the back of the courthouse in 1989.
The Courthouse Today
Today, the Wilkes County Courthouse is still used for its original purposes.
It is still the home of The Superior Court of Wilkes County. This court handles jury trials, makes decisions about evidence, and gives verdicts. The judges for this court are elected every four years.
Other courts, like the Magistrate Court and the Probate Court of Wilkes County, also have offices inside the courthouse.
The five members of the Wilkes County Board of Commissioners hold their meetings at the courthouse. The office of the County Administrator is also located there.
Images for kids
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The County Courthouse in Washington, Wilkes County, Georgia, United States
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Plaque listing courthouses
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Plaque at Wilkes Courthouse noting final meeting of the C.S.A. government.
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NRHP plaque
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A fire in 1958 left the building with a flat roof until 1989.
