Tyler County Courthouse

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Tyler County Courthouse. Now settle in, because this building has had more lives than most folks care to count. Tyler County came into being in 1846, and pretty soon after that, Woodville was chosen as the county seat.

This particular block, right here, was set aside for the courthouse square, and by February of 1849, the first courthouse was already standing on it. Done. Finished.

The county had its home. But if you think that's the end of the story, well, you don't know county government. Come November of 1890, the Tyler County commissioners court convened, with county judge Henry West presiding, and they made a decision: this courthouse wasn't going to cut it anymore.

Time to build something new. They authorized the sale of bonds to finance the whole operation, and they hired the Corpus Christi architectural firm of Glover and Hodges to design what would come next. Now, Glover and Hodges were not in the business of doing anything plain or simple.

They gave Tyler County a courthouse in typically eclectic Victorian-era fashion, pulling from the Second Empire style, Gothic style, and Mediterranean style, all rolled into one building. Whatever they had, they put it in there. Construction got underway in 1891, and I'll tell you, it was not smooth sailing.

Problems cropped up during construction, and yet, somehow, contractors M. A. McKnight and McKnight pushed through and completed the courthouse in early 1892.

That building stood as it was for a good long while, until 1935, when the county took a long look at it and decided it needed a serious makeover. Using Works Progress Administration funds, they undertook a massive remodeling project that ran through 1937. The goal was to modernize.

And they did modernize. They removed the more high style elements, the flourishes, the finery that Glover and Hodges had so carefully designed. They added a rear addition.

The building came out the other side looking quite different than it went in. But here is the thing about that courthouse, and this is what the marker wants you to hold onto: certain character-defining features from that original 1892 design refused to leave. The windows are still there.

The central tower is still there. Standing. Watching.

The Tyler County Courthouse has been a first courthouse, a Victorian showpiece, and a modernized county building, all on the same block that was set aside for it way back after 1846. Its evolution from original design to current appearance is, the marker says, a part of the county's history. And you can see every chapter of it, if you know where to look.

What the marker says

After the creation of Tyler County in 1846 and the subsequent selection of Woodville as county seat, this block was set aside for use as the courthouse square and the first courthouse was completed by February 1849. In November 1890, the Tyler County commissioners court, with county judge Henry West presiding, elected to build a new center of county government and authorized the sale of bonds to finance the construction. The Corpus Christi architectural firm of Glover and Hodges designed the new courthouse in typically eclectic Victorian-era fashion, incorporating elements of the Second Empire, Gothic and Mediterranean styles. Despite problems during construction in 1891, contractors M. A. McKnight and McKnight completed the courthouse in early 1892. In 1935-1937 the county undertook a massive courthouse remodeling project with Works Progress Administration funds. Efforts to modernize the building at this time resulted in the removal of its more high style elements and the construction of a rear addition. Character-defining features from the original design, such as the windows and central tower remain, however. The Tyler County courthouse stands as a symbol of county government and a center of public and governmental activities. Its evolution from original design to current appearance is a part of the county's history and the building's service to the people of Tyler County. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2000