063 of 254:  Callahan County Courthouse, Baird, Texas.  County Population:  13,544

Callahan County, Texas

"Callahan County was formed by the Texas legislature in 1858 from Bexar, Bosque, and Travis counties and named for James Hughes Callahan, a survivor of the Goliad Massacre and leader of the Callahan expedition. Because of the threat of Comanche attack, little permanent settlement took place in the area until after the Civil War.
"By 1875 land promoter Nelson A. Smith established the first town, Belle Plain, near the center of the county.
"Between 1858 and 1877, Callahan County was attached successively to Bexar County, Travis County, and Eastland County for administrative and judicial purposes. In 1877 the residents, more than 150 strong, signed a petition requesting the organization of Callahan County. At the election of July 3, 1877, Callahan City became the first county seat, a position the town retained only until the election of October 13, 1877, when Belle Plain was voted in as the new county seat.
"In 1880–81 the Texas and Pacific Railway was constructed from Fort Worth to El Paso. Stations for the railroad were located at Putnam, Baird, and Clyde, all of which soon developed into towns, but bypassed Belle Plain six miles to the north. An election on January 16, 1883, made Baird the new county seat."
Christopher Long, "CALLAHAN COUNTY," Handbook of Texas Online 

I visited Callahan County and photographed the courthouse in Baird on July 25, 2010 and again on July 12, 2015, a Sunday.

June 2020: Callahan County was awarded a $4,684,891 grant from the state for a full restoration of the 1929 Callahan County courthouse!

​The Callahan County Courthouse, Voelcker & Dixon’s example of transitional Classical Revival style, features three stories designed with simple, clean lines and embellished with glazed terra cotta decorative elements. Callahan received a Round VIII Emergency Grant and Round X Planning Grant. The county’s Round XI Full Restoration Grant funds the full restoration of the Callahan County Courthouse, including the removal of an asphalt parking lot, and the improvement of site drainage and the re-establishment of the courthouse square perimeter with a new drive and the burial of electrical lines, and the repair of sewage lines and drainage. Masonry and terracotta restoration, and the removal of an elevator tower will restore the exterior. Restoration of original light fixtures and interior finishes, including a unique acoustic tile ceiling in the District Courtroom, along with the removal of non-original wood paneling and suspended ceilings will complete the project.

Callahan County Courthouse 1900

Image of 1900 courthouse courtesy courthousehistory.com

When the county seat moved to Baird in 1883, a new courthouse was constructed, using the plans for the Tom Green Country courthouse by W.W. Larmour of San Antonio ("borrowed" by Oscar Ruffini and subsequently reused by others for several other courthouses, including Callahan, Blanco, Concho, Mills, and Sutton counties ).
In 1900 the county commissioners decided to construct a new courthouse, using materials from the 1884 courthouse.  Architect J. Reily Gordon was eventually selected to design the courthouse.  According to Chris Meister, the Gordon courthouse was "the last iteration of Gordon's Signature Plan with entrance porches in the reentrant angles of a modified Greek cross."
Meister also notes that "the rough-cut stone on the exterior and paired, low-arched windows appear to have been extracted directly from the previous courthouse."  This courthouse was demolished in 1929.
James Riely Gordon, His Courthouses and Other Public Architecture, Chris Meister, 2011

Callahan County Courthouse 1929

Image courtesy of courthousehistory.com

Photograph circa 1939, courtesy TXDOT

The southeast corner of the courthouse. The front façade faces south. The county jail is on the right

The cornice of the east façade

The current Callahan County courthouse was designed by the Wichita Falls Architects & Engineers, Voelcker & Dixon.
April 30, 2014.  The Texas Historical Commission announced the recipients of the Texas Historic Courthouse Preservation Program Round VIII Grants.
Callahan County: $450,000 grant award for the complete replacement of the building’s piecemeal electrical system and replacement of badly deteriorated wood windows to avoid imminent interior damage.

The front steps of the courthouse

The southwest corner of the courthouse

The view from the courthouse steps, looking south along Market Street towards the railroad station. Unfortunately, the view is obscured by trees

The building's cornerstone is visible behind the bushes at the southeast corner

The northwest corner of the courthouse. The north façade is unadorned and clearly intended to be the back of the building

The courthouse square is shaded with mature trees

Texas & Pacific Railway depot, Baird, 1911. This historic building was recently restored.