I traveled to Fort Worth on business on Wednesday, June 27, and then took a vacation day in order to visit 5 counties in the DFW area. I also took the opportunity to take additional photographs of the Tarrant County courthouse in Fort Worth. The high temperature each day was well over 100 degrees and there wasn't a cloud in the sky. Thank goodness for air-conditioning! It was so hot the mounted police were resting their horses in the shade in front of the Tarrant county office building. They attracted the attention of some passing children.
I'll be updating the Tarrant County page soon with new photographs of the historic courthouse and various county buildings in the vicinity of the courthouse. Meantime, here's a view of the historic courthouse and the adjacent post-modern civil courts building, now closed for reasons I'll have to discover.
Tarrant County courthouse
Signs on the doors announce "building closed"
I completed my business in Fort Worth in time to take a late afternoon drive west through Weatherford (Parker County) and into Palo Pinto County. On my way through Weatherford, seat of Parker County, I stopped long enough to take some photographs of the W.C. Dodson designed courthouse from the west, on US Highway 180. This highway passes through 10 county seats between Fort Worth and the New Mexico state line. I've now visited 8 of the 10 and by the end of July I will have photographed all 10 courthouses on US 180.
You can't miss the Parker County courthouse!
Palo Pinto County's seat is Palo Pinto, a very small town (less than 500 population) in the center of the county. The 1940 era courthouse dominates the town square.
Palo Pinto courthouse
Downtown Palo Pinto
I also found another wonderful "rock" building in Palo Pinto: the Methodist Church.
Love the sign!
Running through the middle of Palo Pinto County is the Brazos River. Highway 180 crosses the river between Palo Pinto and the largest town in the county, Mineral Wells. I stopped to photograph the river from the highway bridge and wished I could join the people enjoying the cool(er) waters on that hot summer afternoon.
The Brazos River, north of the US 180 bridge in Palo Pinto County
Mineral Wells, largest community in Palo Pinto County, is located on the eastern side of the county. Mineral Wells, with a population under 20,000, is home to a very large and very empty relic of its past, the Baker Hotel. Opened in 1929 to cater to the needs of Texans looking to enjoy the mineral springs for which the town in named, the Hotel Baker stands 14 stories high. Here's a postcard view:
It closed its doors in 1963. And it's still around in 2012. To learn more about this fascinating building and the city that surrounded it, go to http://www.bakerhotel.us/ Here's a current view of the abandoned building.
The Baker Hotel, Mineral Wells
Mineral Wells is home to many historic buildings, but the Baker Hotel "stands" out given its size and height. Mineral Wells is less than an hour's drive from Fort Worth. It's worth the visit.
I finished my day in Denton, where I spent a restful night in the Fairfield Inn on I-35W. I had dinner at a local Italian restaurant that shall remain nameless. Let's just say the food was not worth bloggin about...
I finished my day in Denton, where I spent a restful night in the Fairfield Inn on I-35W. I had dinner at a local Italian restaurant that shall remain nameless. Let's just say the food was not worth bloggin about...
RSS Feed