1*> Form No 10-300 , \ 0

U N I T E D S T A T E S D E P A R T M E N T O F T H E I N T E R I O R

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY -- NOMINATION FORM

FOR NPS USE ONLY

RECEIVED ^py ^ ^ ^975

DATEENTERED ^

SEE INSTRUCTIONS IN HOWTO COMPLETE NATIONAL REGISTER FORMS TYPE ALL ENTRIES - COMPLETE APPLICABLE SECTIONS

Q N A M E HISTORIC ^

H o p k i n s C o u n t y C o i i r t h o u s e AND/OR COMMON

B L O C A T I O N STREETS NUMBER

C h u r c h and J e f f e r s o n S t r e e t s —NOT FOR PUBLICATION

CITY. TOWN

.<^nlphnr .-ip r i n g s —VICINITY OF CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

1 STATE CODE COUNTY CODE

HnpWinc: 223

CLASSIFICATION

CATEGORY

—DISTRICT

_J{BUILDING(S)

—STRUCTURE

—SITE

—OBJECT

OWNERSHIP

OiPUBLIC

—PRIVATE

—BOTH

PUBLIC ACQUIS IT ION

—IN PROCESS

—BEING CONSIDERED

STATUS

JCOCCUPIED

—UNOCCUPIED

—WORK IN PROGRESS

A C C E S S I B L E

—YES: RESTRICTED

X - Y E S ; UNRESTRICTED

— NO

PRESENTUSE

—AGRICULTURE ._MUSEUM

—COMMERCIAL —PARK

—EDUCATIONAL —PRIVATE RESIDENCE

—ENTERTAINMENT —RELIGIOUS

G O V E R N M E N T

—INDUSTRIAL —MILITARY

—SCIENTIFIC

—TRANSPORTATION

—OTHER

[OWNER OF PROPERTY NAME

Hopkins County STREETS NUMBER

CITY. TOWN

S u l p h u r S p r i n g s VICINITYOF

STATE

Texas 0LOCATION OF LEGAL DESCRIPTION

COURTHOUSE. REGISTRY OF DEEDS.ETC „ , . _ ^

Hopkins County Courthouse STREETS NUMBER

Church and J e f f e r s o n S t ree t s CITY. TOWN

SulDhur Scrinas STATE

• R E P R E S E N T A T I O N I N EXISTING SURVEYS TITLE jjig^Qj-j^j, S i t e s I n v e n t o r y Se Recorded Texas H i s t o r i c Landmark

DATE 1970 & 1975 _FEDERALX_STATE —COUNTY —LOCAL

DEPOSITORYFOR

SURVEYRECORDS ^ g ^ a s H l s t o r i c a l C o m m i s s i o n

CITY. TOWN

A u s t i n STATE

Texas

B DESCRIPTION CONDIT ION C H E C K ONE C H E C K ONE

—EXCELLENT —DETERIORATED —UNALTERED X-ORIGINAL SITE

X_GOOD —RUINS X-ALTERED —MOVED DATE

- F A I R —UNEXPOSED

DESCRIBE THE PRESENT AND ORIGINAL (IF KNOWN) PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

San Antonio a r c h i t e c t J. Riely Gordon was noted f o r the design of a number o f Central Texas courthouses such as the Bexar County Courthouse i n San Antonio, the Fayette County Courthouse i n La Grange and the V i c t o r i a County Courthouse i n V i c t o r i a , i n which he developed a d i s t i n c t i v e Romanesque Revival idiom characterized by use of towers, t u r r e t s and s i m i l i a r elements i n broken massing, as w e l l as by the use o f polychromatic ashlar masonry. I n a departure from the t r a d i t o n a l c r o s s - a x i a l p l a n , Gordon developed a cr u c i f o r m layout of a c e n t r a l space surrounded by a g a l l e r y and then by a d j o i n i n g rooms. Convenient t o a l l o f the rooms, the stairway was placed i n a c e n t r a l p o s i t i o n . Acess was e f f e c t e d at the ree n t r a n t angles of the r e s u l t i n g Greek cross p l a n . The Hopkins County Courthouse while s i m i l a r i n plan t o Gordon's other e f f o r t s i s s i t e d d i f f e r e n t l y from the t r a d i t i o n a l l ayout o f Texas courthouses. Located across the s t r e e t from the main square r a t h e r than squarely i n the middle, as was usual, i t lacks the normal q u a d r i l a t e r a l symmetry o f entrances, sub­s t i t u t i n g a modified plan w i t h e n t r i e s on the northwest cLnd southwest.*

The broken massing o f Gordon's c r u c i f o r m p a t t e m was r e a d i l y accommodated by the s t y l i s t i c vocabulary of the Romanesque Revival. Walls were ashlar masonry i n pink g r a n i t e . Walls and steps were of polished blue g r a n i t e . Completing the v i v i d polychromatic treatment, voussiors, l i n t e l s and s t r i p courses were o f red sandstone. A band o f stones of c o n t r a s t i n g hue, set i n a checkerboard p a t t e r n forms a border at the roof l i n e .

The dominant a r c h i t e c t u r a l feature i s a h i p - r o o f e d c e n t r a l tower set o f f by ornamental t u r r e t s and dormers which break up the roof l i n e .

I n the center o f the n o r t h and south facades below small b a l ­conies, appeared d e l i g h t f u l carvings i n c l u d i n g designs and faces. Heavily carved cartouches, bear the date o f c o n s t r u c t i o n .

The Hopkins County Courthouse, described w i t h the other b u i l d i n g s of J. Riely Gordon, i s a b o l d and vigo\i)^rous statement o f seats of government. I t s o v e r a l l s t a t e o f pr e s e r v a t i o n and i n t r i n s i c i n t e r e s t as a departure from the standard courthouse la y o u t would appear t o mandate i t s conservation.

*At the northeast and Southeast angles are t h r e e - s t o r y q u a r t e r - c i r c u l a r bays w i t h f l a t arched windows on the f i r s t l e v e l and t a l l rounded windows on the second and t h i r d l e v e l s which have been enclosed.

SIGNIFICANCE

PERIOD

—PREHISTORIC

— 1400-1499

— 1500-1599

— 1600-1699

— 1700-1799

X-1800-1899

— 1900-

AREAS OF SIGNIFICANCE

ARCHEOLOGY-PREHISTORIC

ARCHEOLOGY-HISTORIC

—AGRICULTURE

XARCHITECTURE

—ART

—COMMERCE

—COMMUNICATIONS

—COMMUNITY PLANNING

—CONSERVATION

—ECONOMICS

—EDUCATION

—ENGINEERING

—EXPLORATION/SETTLEMENT

—INDUSTRY

INVENTION

CHECK AND JUSTIFY BELOW

—LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE

—LAW

—LITERATURE

—MILITARY

—MUSIC

—PHILOSOPHY

X POLITICS/GOVERNMENT

—RELIGION

—SCIENCE

—SCULPTURE

—SOCIAL/HUMANITARIAN

—THEATER

—TRANSPORTATION

—OTHER (SPECIFY)

SPECIFIC DATES 1894-1895

BUILDER/ARCHITECT J . R i e l y Gordon STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

Land i n Hopkins county was f i r s t patented during the period of the Texas Republic, and w i t h the c r e a t i o n o f the county on May 25, 1846, the town o f Tarrant became the county seat. I n 1871 f o l l o w i n g several boundary charges i n which the county l o s t a p o r t i o n of i t s area t o Lamar County, the county seat was moved t o Sulphur Springs.

By 1882, two courthouses had been b u i l t i n Hopkins County. The t h i r d one, erected i n 1882 was destroyed on February 11, 1894, by a f i r e t h a t also burned the j a i l and several adjacent s t r u c t u r e s . On March 24, 1894, the County Commissioners' Court se l e c t e d J. Riely Gordon of San Antonio as the a r c h i t e c t f o r the new courthouse. The Dallas f i r m of Sonnafield and Emmins was awarded the co n t r a c t f o r co n s t r u c t i o n .

Early i n 1895, Austin a r c h i t e c t A.O. Watson was h i r e d t o inspect the work. He admired the s t r u c t u r e , p r a i s i n g i t as a "very neat clean design, c o v e n t i o n a l l y arranged and s u b s t a n t i a l i n i t s general c o n s t r u c t i o n , " but suggested a d d i t i o n a l bracing t o strengthen the stonework.

The building was accepted on August 22 , 1895, at a f i n a l cost of $75,000.00. A clock f o r the tower was p e t i t i o n e d f o r by some c i t i z e n s , but the County Coirmiissioners refused t o provide fionds f o r i t .

The courthouse s t i l l serves i t s o r i g i n a l f u n c t i o n despite unsympathetic remodeling which d e t r a c t s from the beauty of the o r i g i n a l design. Examples include i r o n hand r a i l i n g s which cracked the sandstone when clamped t o the stone, a wooden shed which covers the southwest entrance, and window enclosures. However, the a l t e r a t i o n s do not d e t r a c t from the o v e r a l l beauty of the design.

IMAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES Robinson, W i l l a r d B., and Webb, Todd, Texas Public B u i l d i n g s of the

Nineteenth Century, A u s t i n , 19 74. Latimer, T r u e t t , "Evaluation o f A p p l i c a t i o n f o r Commemorative Marker,

Texas H i s t o r i c a l Commission" (Correspondence). Hopkins County Commissioners' Court Minutes, Vol.7

IGEOGRAPHICAL DATA ACREAGE OF NOMINATED PROPERTY h a C r e

UTM REFERENCES

A[1JL5J 12+5. 64.2 0 1 I36l6t914.4,01 ZONE EASTING NORTHING

• I I I • I • • I I • I . I . • 1

J L.-L B|_J I I • L. ZONE EASTING NORTHING

D L J I I . 1 • • 1 I . I . I . . I VERBAL BOUNDARY DESCRIPTION

The Hopkins Coianty Courthouse i s located on the southeast corner of the i n t e r s e c t i o n o f s t a t e highways 313 and 154. These highways border the n o r t h and west sides. On the east a j a i l j o i n s the s t r u c t u r e and on the south an unpretentious business b u i l d i n g forms a p h y s i c a l boundary.

LIST ALL STATES AND COUNTIES FOR PROPERTIES OVERLAPPING STATE OR COUNTY BOUNDARIES

STATE CODE COUNTY CODE

STATE CODE COUNTY CODE

FORM PREPARED BY NAME/TITLE W i l l a r d B. Robinson,Professor o f A r c h i t e c t u r e S. E l i z a b e t h Sasser-Research Associate 8/24/76 ORGANIZATION

D i v i s i o n o f Arch i t ec tu re -Texas Tech U n i v e r s i t y DATE

806/742-2430 STREETS NUMBER

P . O . BOX 4499

TELEPHONE

CITY OR TOWN

L u b b o c k STATE

Texas

a STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER CERTIFICATION THE EVALUATED SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS^ROPERTY WITHIN THE STATE IS:

NATIONAL S T A T E A — LOCAL

As the designated State Historic Preservation Officer for the National/Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89-665) . I

hereby nominate this property for inclusion in the National Regts/ef and certify that y ^ a s bpaif evaluated according to the

criteria and procedures set forth by the National Park Service.

STATE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICER SIGNATURE

TITLE Texas State H i s t o r i c Preservation O f f i c e r

DATE

FORNPSUSEONLY

I HEREBY CERTIFY T H A ^ f H I S PROPER CLUDED IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER

OATE

DIRECTOR. O ATTEST: DATE

KEEPER OF THE NATIONAL REGISTER

GPO 692 . 453

Property

State / Workin^umber / / / / 7G^9S-3^ TECHNICAL ^^^^i^^y^^,,,^^ t.mi ^•--•''^COmmL

Maps"' y /A /^ -^^

"7 ^ ARCHITECTURAL HISTORIAN

12.- I(AOC»

ARCHEOLOGIST

OTHER

HAER Inventory

Review

REVIEW UNIT CHIEF

'^^ANCH CHIEF

KEEPER

National Register Write-up Send-back Entered APR 1 i 1977 Federal Register Entry ^ ' 3 - ' ) ' f Re-submit

I N T : 2 I 0 6 - 7 4

United States Department of the Interior National Park Service WASO No. 7

ENTRIES IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER

STATE TEXAS

Date Entered APR 1 i 1377

name Location

vV

Sgt* Doyitt S l ta

Hopklna County CourchouBa

SI Paeo vicinity El Faso County

Sulphur Springs Hopkina County

• Also Wotified

Hon. John G. Tower Eon. ULoyd Sentsen Hon. Richard C. White Bon. Sas) B. Hall l&r. Francis B. Rocha

Regional Director, Southwest Region

880 Mott/ej 4-12-77

Stata Historio Presarvation Officer Kr. Truett Latizaer Executive Director Taxaa UlBtorical Cossaission P.O. Box 12276, Capitol Station Auatin, Texaa 73711

NR Data J 7 DATE, ) 1 7 ^

Rev iewer I N I T I A L S ! , — - .

APR 1: ]977 DOE

N A M E AS I T APPEARS I N FEDERAL REGISTER:

OTHER KSJ-ESi

Hopkins County Courthouse

L O C A T I O N :

smtT*NUM8eii Church and Jefferson Sts,

oiY.TowN Sulphur Springs

STAT£ Texas 048

CONGRtSa iONAl OlSTBICT 1st VICINITYOF

COUNTY c o d e

Hopkins ' 223

ovvNTR OF PROPERTY; ( C i r c l e ) PRIVATE STATE LOCAL GOV'T MUNICIPAL ^ U N T ^ OTHER

ADMINISTRATOR(under l ine)

NPS REGION: (CIRCLE) N.ATLANTIC

FEDERAL (AGENCY NAIIE) :

MID ATLANTIC SOUTHEAST MIDWEST

OUTm-ffiST^ ROCKY MOUNTAIN VEST PACIFIC K0RTm^EST

F E A T U R E S : IMTERIOR Substcintially intact-1 unknown - 4

_ n o t a p p l i c a b l e - 7

• C O N D I T I O N - -^xCEUtNT

_ F A I H

EXTERIOR _Substantially intact-2

ur ikrovm .-5 _ n o t a p p l i c a b l e - 8

ENVIRONS _ Substantially intact-3 unknown -6

_ Kct appld cable-9 Int e r i o r , exterior, cn".'ircns not intact-0

_0ETER10BATE0 _ U N A L T E R t D

_ R U I N S

—UNEXPOSED

_t . 'nexcava t«? '^

^ I I E R E O

- R e c o n s t r u c t e d

IGrNALSITE

—MOVED

—Unkr.cwn - E x c a v a t e d

ACCESS- Y e s - r e s t r i c t e d TKpg^^^iInrestlrictgd^' No access Unknovm

historic district*^ YES (NO^

WITHIN NATIONAL REGISTER HISTORIC DISTRICT? IF YES, NAME:

YES

WITHIN NATIONAL HISTOPJC LANDMARK? IF YES, NAME:

YES

ADAPTIVE U S E : YES

F U N C T I O N (S): (use vocabulary words)

Saved ? YES

then- C o K ^ T r t O W ^ y i f

now- "52^ *z —

S I G N I F I C A N C E :

_AHCHEOl.OGy PREHISTORIC

—ARCHEOIOGV HISTORIC .-AGRICULTURE JURCHITECTURE

^ _ A R T

—COMMERCE

—COMMUNICATIONS

Claims 1 1

— CONSERVATION

—ECONOMICS

—EDUCATION

—ENGINFEniNG

—EXPlORAI iON

—INDUSTRY

—INVENTION

first*-' Y£s

—LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE —RELIGION

— l A w / G o v ' t / p o l i t i c S —SCIENCE

—UTERATURE

—MILITARY —SOCIAIYHUMANITARIAN

—MUSIC

—PHILOSOPHY —TRANSPORTATION

, , ^ O L ! I I C S . G O V E R N M E N T - O T H E R (SPECIFY)

oldest'-' YE? NO^ **onlyl?

e n t e r t a i n m e n t

— h e a l t h recreation

—settlement socio/cultural u r b a n & coinnun

p l a n n i n g

YES NO

ARCHITECTURAL STYLE.* R ^ o / y s ^

architeeV/m.builder: 0 . f l l A ^ Q ^ r u d ^ engineer;

landscap^garden designer: artist/artisan:

inteHo.. decorator: bui.dei/eontraeta.: W ^ s Q ^ ^

ETHNIC G R O U P : g^vywywUsX)

N A V I E S ; personal (label role

& appropriate date)

events

institutional

D A T E S : DATE OF CONSTRUCTION (Specific date or 1/4 of century): j —

DATE(S) OF "t-!AJOR" ALTERATIONS:

HISTORICALLY SIGNIFICANT DATE(S):

S O U R C E . NOMINATION) PRIVATE STATE LOCAL GOV"T MUNICIPAL COUNTY

OTHER--" FEDERAL AGENCY;

A C R E A G E : (to nearest tenth of an acre)

C O l ^ l M E N T S * (if^clude a r c h i t e c t u r a l i n f o r m a t i o n here)

* ''

C\ft£JC Crow shofjL, if\^3er^rg gflibUd. ordL hip^d rd^^chffns ; CUVJAOI UOU W I A ,

loi+KopLO Vatil ifidwn , c.nx»aft.V<iJvMte ojrd- pyrajmulnJ roof ^ bouudi p«u±v sichins

SU-tftVo Cf nus oaoJUd bv OAnrvs-o *1\ACnosj ui4V\ ftjrvdLoicl Z-Ad-sku^ OL* d..

S I G N I F I C A N C E « ( m a x i m u n \ two sentences)