Texas acts to save historic courthouses

Judge: Donley County ahead of the pack

By Roger Estlack, Clarendon Enterprise

The Texas Historical Commission (THC) officially announced this week that the Texas Legislature and Governor George W. Bush have established the Texas Courthouse Preservation Program through House Bill 1341.

The program provides partial matching grants totaling $50 million to assist counties in restoring Texas courthouses that are at least 50 years old.

County Judge Jack Hall says everything is on track for the Donley County Courthouse to receive the assistance.

Hall says Donley County is ahead of the pack in terms of creating a master plan. The Texas Historical Commission will hold its first meeting on planning a master plan August 13 in Austin. But Donley County’s plan is already well underway.

“The architect is still working on the master plan for the courthouse,” Hall said, “and a draft of that plan has been sent to the Texas Historical Commission for approval.”

Austin architects from Volz & Associates have been working on the plan for Donley’s courthouse since June, and Hall said the final plan must be finished by October of this year. Still unknown to the county’s architects is the composition of the original roof of the courthouse. Hall said any old photos that clearly show the roof of the building would greatly help with the creation of the master plan.

Built in 1890, the Donley County Courthouse is the oldest surviving courthouse in the Texas Panhandle.

Texas courthouses have been in the national spotlight since 1998, when the National Trust for Historic Preservation named them to its “America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places” list. Many of these landmarks have fallen into disrepair due to inadequate funding for building care and maintenance, and the local courthouse is no exception.

The Texas Courthouse Preservation Program hopes to preserve these Texas treasures for future generations to enjoy and admire.