Red River courthouse placed third in the online challenge

Red River County Courthouse was built in 1885 with a style of part Victorian, Gothic and Italian Renaissance.
Red River County Courthouse was built in 1885 with a style of part Victorian, Gothic and Italian Renaissance.

The Red River County Courthouse, also known as the "beacon of home" to Clarksville residents, placed third in the Gazette's Courthouse Challenge.

Completed in 1885, it is the fourth and only standing courthouse in the county. It is also the only one ever built at the present site, a few blocks off the town square.

Jim Clark, a sixth-generation descendant of James Clark, who founded the city, said the Renaissance Revival courthouse stands as a welcoming symbol to Clarksville residents.

"It's sort of what we call the beacon of home," he said. "When people think about coming home, that's the one building they think of."

Bordered by Monroe, Madison, Walnut and Cedar streets, it was designed by Dallas architect W.H. Wilson and bids were accepted in October 1883, according to narrative from the National Register of Historic Places. P.C. Livingston of Monroe, La., was selected as the contractor.

The building features columns and pedestals projecting from the corners and was built with sandstone mined from a quarry in the nearby community of Honey Grove, according to county officials. The rock was hauled in by railroad, then loaded on wagons and pulled by mules about six or seven blocks down the street.

The outside walls are sandstone all the way through, about 3 feet thick and painted plaster. About 90 percent of the courthouse has wooden floors and most of it is wood on the inside.

The courthouse cost about $55,423 to build at the time, which was $15,000 more than anticipated, according to the National Register of Historic Places. In the early 2000s, about $5 million was spent remodeling it, according to texascourthouses.com.

Jim Clark served on the restoration committee from 2000 to 2004. He helped raise funds for the restoration and was the reopening chairman for the ceremony, which was held in 2002.

He said the restoration process revealed many original architectural details.

"During restoration, they discovered while remodeling many architectural things painted on the walls, including a saying over the judge's bench in the courtroom," Clark said. "It has really neat architectural things in it. The courtroom is the best thing to see in there."

It resembles the one seen in the movie 'To Kill A Mockingbird' and will hold about 150 people. The ceilings are almost 20 feet tall on the bottom floor and 25 to 30 feet tall in the courtroom. It still contains 11 of the original jury chairs, witness stand, jury box and judge's bench just like it was in 1885.

In the early 1980s, the bell tower beams had shifted and the building was leaning north. During that time, district judges would not hold court because their offices were under there and they were afraid the bell would fall, a county official said.

County commissioners then decided to install steel beams to support the tower at a cost of $60,000. The bell tower was later replaced and the old bell tower is on the courthouse lawn for public viewing.

Clark added that the history of the courthouse is important to all those who live in the county.

"It certainly has interesting architecture and to think about all the things that have gone on in there in everyone's life, from your birth certificate and marriage certificates, they are all right there at the courthouse," Clark said.

The three previous courthouses no longer stand. The first was built in 1830 at Jonesboro, which was then the county seat. The second, a frame structure, was completed in 1840 in Madras and the third, a Greek Revival, red-brick, two-story structure, was completed in 1850 in Clarksville.

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