The Evans County Courthouse was built in 1923 at a cost of $60,000, replacing temporary offices in the White Building. It was one of several in the area designed by prolific courthouse architect J. J. Baldwin.
National Register of Historic Places
The old main post office for Columbus is still used as the downtown branch. It has also housed the federal court house and numerous government offices. The classically influenced Renaissance Revival landmark was designed by local architect E. Oren Smith under government contract. The style is commonly found among public buildings constructed circa 1900-1930.
National Register of Historic Places
Lyons has a prominent new landmark in the form of a courthouse. The original Toombs County courthouse was built in 1906, destroyed by fire in 1917, and rebuilt in 1919. The third courthouse, which was arguably one of the most unattractive in the state, was built in 1964. Hence, this will be fourth courthouse to serve the county. And I’m sure its design is being welcomed by most. The $35 million facility, soon to be completed, has already transformed the look of Lyons for the better. And of course, there’s a Vidalia Onion on top of the dome.
When built as the Waycross Post Office in 1911, this structure was originally one story with a basement. It is credited to James Knox Taylor, Supervising Architect of the Department of the Treasury, but Taylor himself was not always directly involved in individual designs due to the number of projects the department was involved with at any given time.
A second floor and wings were added to the post office in 1936, under the supervision of G. W. Stone. This expansion was made to accommodate the inclusion of the federal courthouse of the Southern District of Georgia. It was also an officially designated fallout shelter during the Cold War. The facility closed in 1975 when the post office and courthouse, respectively, moved into larger more modern facilities elsewhere in town. It sat empty for a time but has been home to an antiques gallery and other businesses in recent years.
National Register of Historic Places
This is the third permanent courthouse to serve Spalding County, built to replace A. Ten Eyck Brown‘s 1911 courthouse, which was lost to fire in 1981. The firm of Baulding & Spandro were the architects. It’s one of the most visible structures in downtown Griffin today, and at least it has a clock. I’m not a big fan of modern courthouses, and I can’t really get a read on the “Neo-Colonial” architecture of this one, but compared to others built in recent years, it’s a bit more aesthetically interesting. That’s about all I can say about the subject.
The old Spalding County Courthouse is a rare example of the early use of the Italianate Style in public buildings in Georgia and is one of just a few surviving antebellum courthouses in the state. Spalding County was created in 1854 and this was its first official courthouse. It was the work of David Demarest (1811-1879) and Columbus Hughes (c.1825-1871). Demarest was a New Jersey-born builder/architect responsible for the Greene County Courthouse, the Powell Building at the State Lunatic Asylum, and the Old Mercer Chapel at Penfield, among others. He is thought to have been the builder of this courthouse, with Hughes serving as architect. Little is known about Hughes other than the fact that he designed the old Atlanta City Hall, on the site of the present state capitol.
The city likes to point out that famed Western outlaw, John Henry “Doc” Holliday, who was born in Griffin, had business dealings in the old courthouse before his family moved to Valdosta. He may also be buried in the old Oak Hill Cemetery.
After construction of a new courthouse in 1911, the structure became the Spalding County Jail in 1914, furnished by the Pauley Jail Works Company of St. Louis. It was decommissioned as the jail in 1984, when a new facility was built elsewhere.
National Register of Historic Places
The venerated firm of Bruce & Morgan designed this High Victorian courthouse, which still commands a prominent position in downtown Forsyth. The first official courthouse for Monroe County was built in 1825, just two years after the town was settled and four years after the creation of the county. It served the county until this structure was built in 1896. This building is noted for its distinguished courtroom, considered one of the finest in Georgia. A similar but less elaborate courthouse was designed by Bruce & Morgan for nearby Butts County two years later.
National Register of Historic Places
While this structure is the “old” courthouse in Perry today, it is actually the third of four which have served Houston County [established in 1821]. The first courthouse was built on this site circa 1824. It was replaced with a brick courthouse in 1856, which served the county until this structure, built between 1948-1949, opened. A population boom in Houston County necessitated a new courthouse, which was built in 2002.
This courthouse was designed by architect E. Oren Smith in the style known as Stripped Classical. Smith was the son of Thomas W. Smith (1860-1926), a prominent Columbus architect.
Upon the creation of Warren County in 1793, court was first held at the home of James McCormick. In 1796, the location was moved to the plantation of Sterling Gardner, which was designated the official county seat. It is said that a courthouse was built on the Warrenton square in 1809, but little to no evidence has been found to corroborate this fact. In 1820-1821, the first documented courthouse was built and it served Warren County until it was destroyed by fire in 1909. The present courthouse replaced it upon completion in 1910. It was the work of Walter Chamberlain, an architect in Birmingham, Alabama, responsible for at least two other Georgia courthouses.
National Register of Historic Places
This Mid-Century Modern structure, now known as the “old county courthouse”, is slated for redevelopment, having been sold by the county circa 2019. It replaced a much more traditional 1898 courthouse and has been widely despised by the community since its construction. The clock tower was added in 1983 but did nothing to appease the building’s legion of detractors. A new court complex was in use by 2013.