050 of 254 Brazoria County Courthouse, Angleton, Texas. County Population: 313,166
Brazoria County, Texas
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"Brazoria County, on the prairie of the Gulf Coast at the mouth of the Brazos River in Southeast Texas, is bordered by Matagorda, Fort Bend, Harris, and Galveston counties. It covers an area of 1,407 square miles. Its highest altitude, Damon Mound, is 146 feet above sea level.
"The area was first populated when Stephen F. Austin selected it for his proposed settlement, and eighty-nine of Austin's Old Three Hundred had grants in what is now Brazoria County by 1824. "Brazoria County took its name from the Brazos River when the Congress of the republic established it on March 24, 1836. Brazoria, which became county seat when the county was organized on December 20, 1836, served until 1896, when Angleton replaced it. The establishment of Fort Bend County in 1837 and of Galveston County in 1838 drew the present county boundaries, and the towns of Columbia, Velasco, and Brazoria were incorporated by the Congress of the republic in 1837." Diana J. Kleiner, "BRAZORIA COUNTY," Handbook of Texas Online I visited Brazoria County and photographed the courthouse on June 25, 2010 and again on August 18, 2013.
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Southbound in Brazoria County on Texas Highway 288
Brazoria County Courthouse, Brazoria 1894 Photograph courtesy THC.
Architect James Riely Gordon designed a monumental Romanesque style courthouse for Brazoria county is 1894, in the town of Brazoria. However, less than a year after it was completed the county seat was moved to Angleton. The Brazoria courthouse was abandoned and became known as "Brazoria County's Folly." It was demolished around 1930. Sigh...
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Brazoria County Courthouse, Angleton 1897
1897 Brazoria County courthouse, Angleton, photo circa 1906, courtesy THC.
"Located on a two-block square, this County Courthouse was built on the same plans that had been used for the construction of the Courthouse in the nearby community of Bay City in the adjacent Matagorda County.
The plans [were] developed by Houston architect Eugene T. Heiner." From the National Register listing narrative |
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"In 1927 the [1897 Heiner courthouse] building was remodeled after the plans of J.A. Tempest. A tower, which was ninety feet high and located on the south side, was removed. Additions evidently were made on the east and west; original roof details were removed and Italian Renaissance features were added on the south. The center section on the north facade with its Roman and stilted arches is the most original in design. Exterior walls were covered with stucco.
"After another new courthouse was erected in 1940, this building was converted into a library." From the National Register listing narrative (Heiner's 1897 courthouse was essentially lost in the 1927 "remodeling.") |
1897/1927 Brazoria County courthouse, circa 1939, photo courtesy TXDOT.
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The north façade of the historic courthouse, now the Brazoria County Museum, seen from N. Velasco Street
The south façade of the historic courthouse
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Close-up view of the historic courthouse doors
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The historic courthouse reflected in the north façade of the 1976 courthouse addition
The 1940 Brazoria County courthouse viewed from the southwest
Brazoria County Courthouse 1940 Photo courtesy THC.
Brazoria County erected yet another courthouse in 1940. Designed by Architect Lamar Cato, it was located to the south of the 1897/1927 court-house. This "modern" 5-story building is clad in granite and limestone
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The front of the 1940 courthouse faces south, on East Locust Street
Apparently the clock works!
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The 1940 courthouse steps. Alas, these monumental stairs and entrance are no longer open to the public
The original courthouse lobby, viewed through the south doors
The view, looking south from the 1940 courthouse steps, towards East Locust Street
The east side of the 1940 courthouse
Found on the east façade of the courthouse
The west side of the 1940 courthouse
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View from the northeast of the 1976 courthouse addition with the 1940 courthouse beyond, on the left
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In 1976 (not a good decade for civic architecture in Texas) a new courthouse was added to the Brazoria County collection. This building, in an abstract modern style, was the design of Wyatt C. Hedrick & Co. It is attached to the north side of the 1940 courthouse with an atrium. The new front door of the Brazoria County courthouse is now the "in-between" space.
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The 1940 courthouse on the left and the 1976 addition on the right, viewed from the east
The public enters the courthouse through doors that are part of the 1976 addition
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The Brazoria County courthouse, viewed from the southwest
A courthouse annex was constructed on the west side of the courthouse square in 2003
The 1940 Brazoria County courthouse seen from the south, on Velasco Street
