Camp County Courthouse
Pittsburg, Camp County, Texas
Marker Inscription
The Texas Legislature created Camp County from the northern part of Upshur County in 1874, and voters chose Pittsburg as their county seat. The county built its first courthouse in 1881. As Pittsburg grew, the two-story brick edifice became too small for the county's needs, and in 1928 commissioners hired the Paris, Texas architectural firm of Smith and Praeger to design a new house of justice. Contractors Wentzel and Wood received the contract for the construction, which was completed in December 1928. The Classical Revival courts building features a stepped parapet, flat arched windows and Corinthian columns. Today, the courthouse remains a central part of life in Camp County. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2004
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
The Texas Legislature created Camp County from part of Upshur County in 1874, and voters made Pittsburg the seat, raising a first courthouse in 1881. When the growing county outgrew that building, commissioners hired the Paris firm of Smith and Praeger to design a new Classical Revival courthouse, completed in December 1928 with its stepped parapet, arched windows, and Corinthian columns. It remains the center of county government.
Why it matters
County courthouses like this were the civic anchors of Texas towns, their architecture broadcasting local ambition and the permanence of self-government.
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Related events
- · Creation of Camp County (1874)
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Shootout at the Pittsburg Depot
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On February 10, 1885, a tangled domestic dispute among George "Dallas" Smart, his wife Annie, and U.S. Army Lt. John W. Heard boiled over into a public confrontation at the Pittsburg railroad depot. As Heard prepared to leave town, a struggle egged on by the gathered crowd ended with Heard shooting and killing Smart. A county judge ruled it self-defense the next day, and after later clearing himself in a court-martial and another trial, Heard went on to a distinguished military career. Annie remarried and died in New Mexico Territory in 1900.
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