Courthouse Road Trip July 13 - 14, 2013

Buc-ee's on I-45 in Madisonville, Texas (I haven't tried the jerky)

I hadn't visited a new county since #182, Terrell County way back in March.  Not that I've been idle.  I re-visited nine counties in May and June.  And, for the first time since I began this blog two years ago, I was up to date, with a webpage published for each of the 182 counties I'd visited!
But, I longed to see something "new" so this weekend I rented a lovely pink Chevy Spark (see photo above) from my favorite car rental company, Enterprise, and took off for northeast Texas.  By the way, the Spark was very frugal with gasoline, averaging over 32 mpg in 550 miles.  On the other hand, it's not exactly a "highway" car.  Next time I'll get something a little larger, with more horsepower and a different color...

My first stop was Athens (Texas), the seat of Henderson County.  Not to be confused with Henderson, the seat of Rusk County, which is nearby.  Henderson County is home to, well I'll let their sign speak for itself:

The current Henderson County courthouse dates from 1913

I can personally vouch for this, because my maternal grandfather, Arnold Clark Brannan, was born in Henderson County in 1901.  And, my grandfather was surely one of the "best people in Texas."  He was the first of four Arnold Clark Brannan's in my family.  They just keeping getting better with each generation I suppose. 

Athens is also home to this lovely little store, right next to the Henderson County Judicial Complex:

This little store packs a big bang for the buck!

Finally, a visitor to Athens can't help but learn that the town is "the home of the hamburger."  The plaque below is on the courthouse square:

For a different take on this claim, click here to learn that the hamburger was not invented in Athens, Texas.

Leaving Athens and the hamburger controversy behind, I drove north to Canton, the seat of Van Zandt County.  By the way, my maternal great-grandfather was born in Van Zandt County.  Apparently, he realized his mistake early on and moved a few miles south to Henderson County.

Here is the current Van Zandt County courthouse:

The courthouse was designed by Voelcker & Dixon and dates from 1937

I always look for and attempt to photograph the building's cornerstone or plaque

I've found that cornerstone don't always get respect.  I've seen several that are bisected by downspouts (see Comal County, for example) and others that are hidden by landscaping, but this is the first one I've come across that is a backdrop to landscaping equipment/junk. 
However, when a county decides to demolish its courthouse and build a new one they usually keep the old cornerstone for historical purposes.  Van Zandt County was no different.  Unfortunately, its historic 1896 courthouse was a landmark building designed by the noted Texas architect J. Riely Gordon.  Here's the cornerstone on the courthouse grounds, with a lonely eagle that used to grace the tower of the historic courthouse.:

1896 Van Zandt County courthouse cornerstone and eagle

Canton, I learned, is also home to an event named "First Monday."  The website says it all - "What started more than a century ago as a flea market has become home to some of the most exciting, cutting-edge home furnishings, antiques and collectibles that can be found anywhere."  Take a look at the aerial photograph on their website and be amazed.  I was.  I was also very grateful that I didn't arrive on one of those weekends.

Next, I headed north to Emory, the seat of the fourth smallest (in land area) county in Texas, Rains County.  There I found a delightful little courthouse, dating from 1908.  It was easily the best looking courthouse I visited this weekend.

The Rains County courthouse was constructed by the ubiquitous Falls City Construction Company of Louisville, KY

Directly west of Rains County is Wood County and its seat, Quitman.  This part of Texas is dotted with lakes and the traffic that goes with weekends "at the lake."  Much of this traffic passes directly in front of the 1925 Wood County courthouse:

Vehicular and boat traffic in downtown Quitman

Saturday, July 12, was a hot, sunny day in this part of Texas.  As I drove south to my last destination, Smith County, I was looking forward to a nice, cold Shiner Bock.  With that goal in mind, I hurried into Tyler, the seat of Smith County and described as "a natural beauty."  Tyler is known for it roses and Earl Campbell, the "Tyler Rose" of Texas football.
The 1955 era courthouse is appropriately sited in downtown Tyler and faces a beautiful park.  Alas, the roses were wilting in the upper 90 degree temperatures.

Smith County courthouse, 1955

After a good night's rest in Tyler, I awoke on Sunday morning to a cloudy, overcast day.  On my way back to Houston I stopped in Nacogdoches and re-visited the courthouse.  It's a unique design; as far I can know, it's the only California ranch house styled courthouse in Texas.  Not that this style makes any sense at all in the piney woods of east Texas.  Here it is, on a busy intersection near downtown Nacogdoches.

The 1958 Nacogdoches County courthouse