One of the most visually pleasing courthouses in Texas is the Grimes County Courthouse in Anderson. This was my first stop on my road trip a few weeks ago into Central Texas and I was definitely not disappointed. This gorgeous old building was constructed in either 1891 or 1893 - there seems to be some dispute among the authorities. Of Italianate design it is built of hand-molded brick with native stone trim. It includes the original vault which survived the first two courthouses in the county. Renovated in 2002, it has withstood two fires and was host to a trial of a member of the Clyde Barrow-Bonnie Parker gang back in the 1930s who vowed he would see the court in infernal regions!
There is no designated parking around the courthouse. In fact, the county judge is the sole official to have a reserved parking space and that happens to be located across the street at a small office building.
Perhaps the most interesting thing about Anderson is it is most likely the smallest county seat in the Texas. In 2009 its population was counted as a mere 280! No wonder the place was dead on the Saturday morning that I buzzed through. The only other living, breathing thing I encountered in town was the little dog in the photo below who seemed to be the town mascot, patroling the street (that's singular, mind you). The courthouse sits on a small knoll at the end of the only city block.
I parked and walked through the town and admired some of the antiques sitting outside an antique shop, including this Norge wringer washing machine. I remember when my grandmother got her first washer. It looked similar to this one - without the rust, of course - and my grandpa had enclosed a portion of the back porch to accommodate the washing machine and to also build a bathroom, complete with a toilet and tub. There was no sink. They simply used an old wooden dresser with a ceramic pitcher and bowl for hand washing! Of course, the bathroom and the space for the washing machine took the place of the two-seater swing that had sat for years on the porch. With each modernization comes a certain loss of the past.
10 comments:
that is really a unique courthouse! very cool find! i liked your story of the porch, too. :)
I think I would like the courthouse without the stairs.
i like all those stairs, they are like an art piece to the building. we had a washer similar to this one, but it had legs not the barrel bottom. two washtubs for 2 rinses. i did sooooo hate wash day.
My grandmother also had a washer like this one. I remember be fascinated watching her run the clothes through those rollers.
I remember those washing machines too, those were the very first ones indeed.
I like the looks of this courthouse. I don't know what attracts me, maybe the old red brick and the white trim. That is such a cute dog, maybe he/she is the town welcoming committee.
LOVE the courthouse and its history. Maybe a small county offers more?
Seems like an especially large building for a town of that size. It is a handsome building.
A member of the Bonnie and Clyde gang was tried here? Fascinating!
Great looking building; that washer reminds me of people being injured by them... quite often.
Sounds like all the townspeople could fit/live in that courthouse!
Cute pooch!
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