Ugliest Texas County Courthouse

19,289 Views | 89 Replies | Last: 3 yr ago by Buck Turgidson
jamesf
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AG
I would have to say that Brazos County is either at the top or close to it.

aalan94
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AG
Every county that had a fire or disaster in the 1940s and 50s rebuilt in this ugly "modern" style.

The Austin County Courthouse in Bellville is another example.



[This message has been edited by aalan94 (edited 5/2/2007 12:22p).]
SWCBonfire
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AG


Aransas County - the only courthouse in Texas with Moorish architecture and it was a J. Riely Gordon-designed structure at that. It's a crying shame.

The old one:




[This message has been edited by SWCBonfire (edited 6/3/2008 2:48p).]
jamesf
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AG
The Aranasas County Courthouse looks just like all the TxDOT buildings.
Savrola
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Whatever courthouse is in Robert Lee Tx. is pretty bad.
p_bubel
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This one?

BQ89AG
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Smith County (Tyler, Texas) replaced this:



with this:

BQ89AG
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AG
Ector County (Odessa, Texas)

Current:


Although not very nice, this ugly monstrosity makes you miss the red brick structure built in 1904 and torn down in 1938:

chick79
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Everything is ugly in Odessa.........

hth
Dough
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Calhoun County wins, hands down.

They replaced this:



With this:


FTAggies
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BQ89 my father is still pissed about that, i asked him about that one day and he told me that they replaced it, smith county has by far the worst and it really pisses me off when i go through my mom's town of kaufman and see those old historical courthouses, whoever decided on that should be lynched
Kiros Kid
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(My first attempt at a pic so beware) For those of you who understand the reference, does the Lubbock County courthouse not look like it was designed by the Brotherhood of Nod?

CanyonAg77
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Randall county, here in Canyon. The 1909 courthouse was good, but they tore off the clock tower, and added two horrendously ugly 1950s additions, one on the north, one on the south. Beyond hideous. The good news is that they tore down the south one a couple of years ago, will be tearing down the north one, and restoring the courthouse soon, including replacing the clock tower.

I'll post the ugly pictures when I find them. Here's the original building:



[This message has been edited by CanyonAg77 (edited 5/3/2007 8:51a).]
BrazosBendHorn
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Dawson County (Lamesa)

Maybe not so much ugly as exceedingly "blah"




the original architecture was better

BQ89AG
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Chick -

Always with the negative vibes!!! Always with the negative vibes!!!

WestTxAg06
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This is a thread that will make you sick.

Dallas replaced this:

with this:


My part of the world is just as guilty. Thankfully we haven't done the same in Jones County as some of our neighbors.

Fisher County went from this

to this:


Now a private residence, this was the original Stonewall County Courthouse in the now-defunct town of Rayner:


Today's courthouse in downtown Aspermont:


Nothing special, but this Nolan County Courthouse:

is better than the current incarnation:


Taylor County uses this:


Here's one that will make you lose your appetite for the rest of the day. Swisher County "remodeled" this building:

The results of the remodeling:


[This message has been edited by WestTxAg06 (edited 5/5/2007 12:24p).]
jickyjack
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BQ89Ag put his finger on the exact spot. The Smith County courthouse is not only the ugliest courthouse in the state, it is representative of the pitiful law that has passed as justice within its confines over the past fifty years. And while Smith County judges have generally run from mediocre to terrible (with exceptions, Tom Ramey being one) over this time, Jack Skeen is possibly and probably the worst. Judge Roy Bean had nothing on him.
BQ89AG
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Jicky -

And that is before you even get into the greatest constitutionally mandated anachronism in the State of Texas - the office of County Sherrif!!! Smith County has a great example with the Armored Personnel Carrier owning, jet ski driving, elected as a D and an R (even after getting thrown out of office for misconduct once if I recall correctly) Sherrif J. B. Smith.



But, we digress away from architecture!!!
BQ89AG
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Regarding the horrible Smith County Courthouse

quote:
Not only that, I don't think many people would disagree with me that it's one of the ugliest courthouses in the state, appearing as though it were designed by some Soviet-era architect with a fetish for concrete boxes.


http://gritsforbreakfast.blogspot.com/2008/05/cynthia-kent-smith-county-needs-more.html



A little more pointed statement regarding Smith County Justice more so than architecture:

quote:
As if to advertise the building's deficiencies, even the requisite statue of Lady Justice next to the courthouse entrance holds aloft her traditional scales but wears no blindfold. The Houston Chronicle awhile back said that omission is "fodder for a rueful joke among defense attorneys. In Smith County, they say, justice is far from blind."


Apache
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lol- I was driving to Port Aransas a couple of weeks ago & passed the Refugio County courthouse & thought it belonged on this thread. While not as bad as some of the more modern efforts, I think it stinks. The style is something called "Texas Renaissance"... defined by the website:
quote:
Texas Renaissance style was a dominant design from about 1900 until the 1930s. The architecture combines other styles such as Renaissance Revival, Classical Revival and Italianate to form a style that is Texan in origin. The one dominant feature of this style of courthouse is the Texas elements that form parts of the building. These features boast the prowess and pride of an ever growing state.


Interesting to note, my grade school in Gonzales must be Texas Renaissance... the old buildings look similar to the style of the Refugio Courthouse.
TERRY L
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My grandmother fussed until the day she died about tearing down the courthouse in Sweetwater and building that ugly building in it's place.
Glad to see a picture of the original one, now see what all the fuss was about.
aalan94
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At least when Dallas replaced their courthouse, they kept the old one.
Bismarck
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Looks like you could call Texas Renaissance, Alamo-esque.

As for Dallas, at least they didn't tear down the original courthouse when they replaced it. They actually just finished restoring it to the original design and have re-opened it as a museum. As for an odd fact about the Dallas courthouse, Dallas a courthouse in a town square because the founder of the city refused to stop growing corn in the middle of the square after donating the land to the city. The courthouse was built on the side of the square the the square itself no longer exists.

As part of the restoration, they put the clock tower back.

oldvalleyrat
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AG


[This message has been edited by oldvalleyrat (edited 5/29/2008 9:54p).]
TERRY L
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it's hard to get used to seeing the clock tower
on the dallas courthouse.

[This message has been edited by TERRY L (edited 5/29/2008 10:55p).]
Saints Roost
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the donley county courthouse is definitely interesting. now that they've finished restoring it the newspaper uses a photo in the masthead.

i was born in swisher county. that courthouse is an ugly, uninspired piece of crap.
DevilYack
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After more than one courthouse was destroyed by fire, Titus County constructed one of the ugliest courthouses ever.



It used to be even uglier - they took some kind of siding off of it about 15 years ago.

I'm not the only one with that opinion:
quote:
Titus County has technically had five courthouses. Four of them built prior to 1870. The fifth (and current) courthouse dates from 1895, although you'd never know it. Looking like a cross between the Battleship Texas and and a geometrically-challenged Mexican pyramid, the Titus County Courthouse is one you'll never forget.

Sometimes, facts need facing. Some buildings are just plain ugly. To borrow a phrase from Susan DuQuesnay Bankston, some buildings are so ugly "they'll wrinkle your pants if you walk in front of them." The current Titus County Courthouse is one of these. Calling it "The Ugliest Courthouse in Texas" is not done to be cruel - nor is it just our opinion. The words spring involuntarily from the lips of most first-time viewers. We've even heard it from several Titus Countians, and in fact, its ugliness is sometimes bragged about.


http://www.texasescapes.com/EastTexasTowns/Mount-Pleasant-Titus-County-Courthouse-Texas.htm
gigemhilo
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i live in titus county.

we had the distinction of the ugliest courthouse in texas back in the 80's/early 90's. and it did look worse then. it had some ugly yellow and grey metal siding on that looked like a building on the original star treck or something. it was hideous, and this is actually a million times better than what it used to look like.

the link above proclaims us as having the ugliest in texas, but it does not take into account the recent remodeling shown in the picutre above. you can see a picture of what it used to look like there.

[This message has been edited by gigemhilo (edited 5/30/2008 9:30a).]

[This message has been edited by gigemhilo (edited 5/30/2008 5:59p).]
terata
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Brazos county, for sure. But hey, B/CS is the mecca of white trash, one learns to expect such stercus.
txdawg80
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taylor county is hideous, along with coleman.

gillespie county is insane with everything that town has, that is one ugly ass courthouse.
BQ78
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Collin County has to be in the top 10:

From:



To:



At least the old one still stands.
Canyon99
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A few of my favorites (best looking)...


And the winner of most aesthetic...


Winner of ugliest courthouse goes to...


Honorable mention for ugliest...

txdawg80
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llano county is a good one
MLK_87
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Hidalgo County replaced this:





With this:



[This message has been edited by MLK_87 (edited 7/14/2008 1:21p).]
Martin Cash
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Thanks, Canyon. I agree, we have the prettiest courthouse in Texas. I've spent many hours in it!
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