The Wharton County Courthouse in Wharton, Texas, has been around since 1889 and it is a definite keeper. Over the years the courthouse was restored and modified to the point that it was no longer recognizable as the architect originally designed. At one point the remodeling effort even removed the bell tower and left a big square box of a building. But in 2006 the courthouse was restored to its original condition, the bell was found and today it looks just as it did, or perhaps even better than, in 1889. The courthouse was constructed of bricks fired from clay taken from the Colorado River which borders the townsite on the south.
The county seat, Wharton, is a city of 9,000 citizens which was originally settled in 1846. It started as a plantation community due to rich agricultural land because of its proximity to the Gulf Coast, and its original settlers who built the original courthouse in 1851 were from Alabama, Kentucky, Virginia, Georgia, and Mississippi. Within time other settlers from Germany, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, and Mexico arrived, along with the descendants of plantation slaves who had lived in the area for to make up a diverse cultural and ethnic community.
Wharton is 60 miles southwest of Houston, 300 miles south of Dallas, and 616 miles southeast of White Deer in the Texas Panhandle. Its most famous native son is Dan Rather, the former CBS news anchor.
15 comments:
In b/w would make a great dated postcard. Love this courthouse looks of yours.
I love the roof line and the tower.. this would make a great spot at night to make a spooky movie. if not for the green grass and sun it has a spooky look to it.. bet it is haunted.. we loved Dan Rather.
Excellent restoration; it would have been a CRIME not to have restored the bell tower!
Excellent restoration; it would have been a CRIME not to have restored the bell tower!
That's an impressive building. It's wonderful that someone saw the importance of restoring it to it's original look.
I like this one also- the clocks and the tower- similar to the one you posted before, but a different top to it. These old buildings are treasures, but I imagine hard to heat and cool and most aren't handicap accessible. My favorite part (besides the tops) would have to be the magnificent staircases most of these have. Very "royal"
Thank goodness for the people who were behind the restoration.
This is such a wonderful picture of the old building!
Very grand!
A stately looking building with elements of grandeur. Love how you worked your magic on this photo.
What an interesting history this place has. That is a stunning bell tower too - so glad they found and restored it.
Beautiful courthouse. I didn't know or didn't remember Dan Rather was from Texas.
Love the dramatic clouds behind it. Also, I like the HDR look to your image.
I like the design of this courthouse.
It's an attractive bell tower. For sure it adds stateliness to the building.
A particularly stunning courthouse from your collection.
Post a Comment