Jim Wells County Courthouse

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Jim Wells County Courthouse. Now, every courthouse has a birthday, but not every courthouse gets a party like this one did. It started with a signature.

On March 11, 1911, Governor Oscar B. Colquitt signed the legislation that created Jim Wells County. The territory had been carved out of what was formerly part of Nueces County, and the new county was named for a man worth naming something after: James B.

Wells, Jr., a prominent Brownsville attorney and business leader, born in 1850 and gone by 1923. The ink was barely dry before folks got to work. The first county elections were held just two months after that signing.

And come January of 1912, the citizens of the new county approved a bond election to finance the construction of a courthouse and jail. They weren't wasting any time. The county commissioners turned to a San Antonio architect named Atlee B.

Ayers to design the thing. And when the day came to lay the cornerstone, July 25, 1912, well, Alice, Texas showed up. More than two thousand people showed up.

The Alice Concert Band played. The Alice Symphony Club performed. There was a barbecue.

There were rodeo events. There was a baseball game. For a cornerstone laying, that is what you call a send-off.

The courthouse stood and served, and then in 1938 something happened beneath the ground that changed everything above it. Oil was discovered in Jim Wells County, and with it came economic development and a population boom that reshaped the county entire. The courthouse was remodeled in 1948 and 1949, and annexes were built nearby in the years that followed.

Its original appearance has been altered, the marker will tell you that straight. But here's what hasn't changed. That building still stands as a significant structure in the county's history, and it still serves as the center of county government.

Started with two thousand people and a barbecue. Still doing the work, all these years later.

What the marker says

Governor Oscar B. Colquitt signed legislation creating Jim Wells County on March 11, 1911. Taken from territory formerly a part of Nueces County, the new county was named for prominent Brownsville attorney and business leader James B. Wells, Jr. (1850-1923). The first county elections were held two months later, and in January 1912 the citizens of the new county approved a bond election to finance the construction of a courthouse and jail. The county commissioners hired San Antonio architect Atlee B. Ayers to design the courthouse. The laying of the cornerstone on July 25, 1912, drew a crowd of more than 2,000 people. Celebration activities included performances by the Alice Concert Band and the Alice Symphony Club, as well as a barbecue, rodeo events, and baseball game. The discovery of oil in Jim Wells County in 1938 led to increased economic development and a population boom. The courthouse was remodeled in 1948-1949, and annexes later were built nearby. Although its original appearance has been altered, the Jim Wells County Courthouse stands as a significant structure in the county's history. It continues to serve as the center of county government. (1992)