Jefferson County Courthouse
1149 Pearl St., Beaumont, TX<p>The Jefferson County Courthouse at 1149 Pearl Street in Beaumont is one of the most outstanding examples of the Art Deco style in Texas and is an important landmark in the architectural development of the Texas Gulf Coast region. That the town of Beaumont should have one of the most significant high-style Art Deco structures in the State is remarkable and illustrates the sophistication that new industries brought to Jefferson County. The Courthouse has outstanding stylistic features on both its interior and exterior. Particularly noteworthy are the strong vertical emphasis and the carved stone panels that embellish it. The interior is equally important, with aluminum, marble, wood, and glass employed as ornament for the large airy spaces. The fourteen-story building was constructed in 1931-32 and was designed by local architect, Fred. C. Stone and A. Babin. The Courthouse has remained virtually unaltered since its completion. However, a three-story annex was recently erected just north of the building, but this addition does not severely affect the historic character and integrity of the Courthouse.</p><p>The property the building occupies has a long history as the scene of county functions. It was conveyed to the Chief Justice of Jefferson County in 1838 by Nancy Tevis, a woman settler who arrived thirteen years earlier. 1838 saw the construction of the first courthouse, a two-story log and pole structure with a jail below and a courtroom above. From 1850 to 1853 court was held over a store owned by Millard and Pulsifer. The second courthouse, of lumber on a cypress log foundation, was begun in 1854. D.T. Inglehart, a surgeon of the Confederate Army, rented the building in the spring of 1863 for use as a hospital. In 1893 the third courthouse, built of red brick and white stone, was completed. The cornerstone of the 1893 building is installed to the right of the entry in the current Jefferson County Courthouse.</p><p>When the time came to build a fourth courthouse, the county chose a former Beaumont mayor, Fred C. Stone, and his partner A. Babin, a Louisiana native, as architects. A million-dollar bond issue provided the funds. Stone and Babin designed it in the current style, with a tower set back from flanking wings, and spared no effort to make the offices and courtrooms grand and impressive. Their work remains virtually whole today. The skyscraper configuration chosen for the Courthouse is especially noteworthy. Texas courthouses had long emphasized verticality, but this was traditionally associated with the use of domes or tower elements. Technology and changing fashions by 1930, however, made possible high-rise public buildings, of which the Jefferson County Courthouse was certainly one of Texas' first; curiously, Huey Long's skyscraper. Louisiana State Capitol less than 200 miles away, was under construction at the same time as the courthouse in Beaumont.</p><p>January 17, 1932, was the dedication day. For the first time, all county offices, court quarters, and the jail were assembled under the same roof. The building was adequate for almost 50 years. In 1978 construction began on an annex, and was completed in 1980.</p><p>There are few true Art Deco buildings in Texas. The biggest cities- Dallas, Fort Worth, and Houston - all have several notable examples. But Beaumont's reception to the new style is unexpected. Of the fifteen buildings for which construction dates are given in Emily Little's Art Deco Architecture in Texas, only six preceded the Jefferson County Courthouse's erection.</p><p>Beaumont is the smallest city known to have a major Art Deco representative. The Kyle Building, in Beaumont's Commercial Historic District, was built after the courthouse. So the courthouse was a pioneer in this part of the state that was just losing its frontier quality, thanks to its roaring industries.</p><p>The future of Art Deco buildings in Texas is uncertain because they are, for the most part, unrecognized as valuable. Designation of a major public structure, the Jefferson County Courthouse, as historic, will facilitate their being more highly esteemed.</p>
Bibliography
National Register nomination submitted by Laurie Limbacher on April 15, 1981, and filed at the Texas Historical Commission in Austin, Texas.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.