139 Somervell County

139 of 254 Somervell County Courthouse, Glen Rose, Texas. Population: 8,490

Somervell County, Texas

"The first permanent Anglo settler [in Somervell County] was Charles E. Barnard, who established an Indian trading post in the late 1840s with his brother, George Barnard, for whom George's Creek was named.
"Barnard's Mill, built in 1860, was the first building at the site that is now
Glen Rose. The mill is still standing and is listed on the National Register of
Historic Places. During most of the 1850s and early 1860s the Barnard's Mill settlement was a part of Johnson County. In 1866 the area was included in a new county, Hood, marked off entirely from Johnson County. Somervell County was established in 1875, when residents in southern Hood and northern Bosque counties petitioned for a new county because of their separation from markets and seats of government. The county, taken completely from Hood County, was named for Alexander Somervell, who led an expedition to Mexico under the Republic of Texas. The first and only county seat is Glen Rose, named in 1872."
Richard Elam, "SOMERVELL COUNTY," Handbook of Texas Online
"During Prohibition the area was a center of moonshining, and the cedar brakes of Glen Rose became known as the 'whiskey woods capital of the state.' " Ada Ferrer, "GLEN ROSE, TX," Handbook of Texas Online

I visited Somervell County and photographed the courthouse on Sunday, April 29, 2012.

Glen Rose is located on the banks of the Paluxy River. This view is to the south and west, from the Elm Street bridge (Texas Highway 144)

Another view of the Paluxy

The Paluxy flows south and east across Somervell County before joining the Brazos a short distance east of Glen Rose

Approaching Glen Rose from the southeast on Elm Street

Somervell County courthouse 1893

Tower sans clocks. Image courtesy courthousehistory.com

" ... the Somervell County Courthouse's civic function is visibly expressed through its strong, dignified and symmetrical architectural style. This ashlar masonry style, inspired by Henry Hobson Richardson's adaptation of the Romanesque mode, was a predominantly used one in the construction of civic buildings throughout the 1890s, and one effectively accommodating one of Texas' natural building resources, stone.
" ... this sturdy and simply designed courthouse was built in 1893 by John Carmachiel at the cost of $13,500. [the cornerstone credits John Cormack as the Builder]
"The substance and character of the Somervell County Courthouse have been conveyed through symmetrical scaling and a simply embellished treatment of its rough-faced native limestone walls."
From the National Register narrative

Image courtesy courthousehistory.com

The courthouse courthouse fronts on Barnard Street

"The roof and clock tower have been greatly altered through the years since their original construction. Early photographs show the mansard roof and clock tower with elaborate cornice cresting, the clock faces themselves bold and handsome, and indeed the focal point of the building. However in 1902 a tornado did much damage to this portion of the building, and no attempt was made [at that time] to restore the tower back to this original state. Following the tornado, which had destroyed most of the cresting and the dignified clock faces, the tower was covered in pressed metal, the only embellishment remaining being the tower roof cresting, and the simple pilasters and keystone arches ornamenting the tower walls." From the National Register narrative
The tower has lately undergone a restoration, including the installation of new clocks.

The courthouse square is home to a bronze sculpture by Robert Summers, a local sculptor, depicting the first family of Glen Rose: Charles Barnard standing and his wife, Juana Cavasos Barnard, astride her horse Pigeon. The sculpture was installed in 2007