Tuesday, February 5, 2008

ABC Wednesday

C is for Courthouse

This is the county courthouse where my husband is a bailiff. He took me in Sunday afternoon so I could get some pictures without bothering anyone. This building was completed in 1914 and was built in the Renaissance Revival Style. Follow the link to see a better (professional) picture of the courthouse.

Above is the back of the District Courtroom. The mural was painted by an inmate from the Gurney Unit, one of the five prisons outside of town.


This is a view from the basement straight up to the stained glass in the dome. To me the spiral staircase is amazing.


This is straight down to the basement floor. The pictue painted on the floor was also done by a TDCJ(Texas Department of Criminal Justice) inmate from one of the prisons.


















Above is two views of the circular marble stairs.




38 comments:

Anonymous said...

Beautiful building, especially the interior :D

Leslie: said...

Oh I love this! And I noticed you're the one whose class is following along with Edmund's exploring! That's so exciting for them! I wish I'd had connections like that when I was teaching. What grade do you teach? obviously primary! I'm guessing kindergarten or grade 1.

dot said...

Wow, that's about the prettiest court house I've ever seen!

Max-e said...

That is a beautiful building. Nice shots

Lilli & Nevada said...

That is one beautiful court house and i love the spriral staircase. You didn't happen to count how many stairs there were did you ?

Paulie said...

Great entry!

I can't get blogger to work for me so am not up yet but hope to soon.

Rune Eide said...

Thank you for a very interesting presentation. I have never been inside a US courthouse (and I hope I'll never be...), but now I at least know that they are worth visiting as tourists! I really liked that staircase.

FO - 2 said...

Beautiful building with nice details. :)

Kostas said...

Very beautiful the photographs from the Courthouse, externally but also internally, it appears but also he is enormous!

david mcmahon said...

Sharon, you've given us some great views of a beautiful building.

The spiral staircase shot is terrific.

And I like the detail about the artwork that was done by an inmate.

ArneA said...

Circling staircase was amazing

imac said...

Beautful C post and a really grand building.


come see my sporty C

Daryl said...

What great photos .. love the angles and curves ..

Jo's-D-Eyes said...

Hi Sharon
That a great C for Circulair stairs and I like the photo's all f the COURTHOUSE very much , welldone Sharon!

Come and see my ABC's photography
JoAnn Holland
Participant in ABC wednesday

Petunia said...

What a beautiful building! Must be very great to work there and see this great interior every day! The photos are beautiful too. Well done!

quintarantino said...

I'm with you, the spiral staircase is amazing.

Dragonstar said...

Wow! Love the staircase! I particularly like the shot up to the rose window.

Andrea said...

Love the spiral stairway. I almost did courthouse but could not get a nice enough picture of it. I was across the road from it and cars kept getting in my picture.

Anonymous said...

Oh how beautiful!! I love court houses and this one is one of the prettiest I have seen inside and out. Thank you for sharing.

Katney said...

Don't you love the old architecture?

I like your Beary Bear project--wonderful for first graders.

Alan said...

Nice photos. It is a beautiful building.

Edmund (the explorer) Nesbitt said...

Ooooooooooooooooh! I bet the staircase is good for sliding down!
Does Beary Bear know? LOL!

DeeMom said...

Amazing mural and the spiral staircase is lovely, great pictures

Happyone said...

Wow, some great shots. What a beautiful building.

Neva said...

Very nice courthouse....beautiful.

VP said...

What a stately builing and a beautiful interior. Thanks for showing us your C!

Randi said...

Beautifully building .

Anne-Berit said...

What a beautyful building,and a great c from you.I love dogs,and I see that you have one too.Mine is a shetland sheepdog female,called Titti:)

Susan said...

What a beautiful courthouse!

Janet said...

What a beautiful building. Great "C" choise.

Anonymous said...

The view up the spiral staircase is a brilliant angle. well done

Pete M said...

Sure is a nice looking building, love those stairs

DigitalShutterMania said...

Beautiful interior photos. I love all photos.

Flassie's Fil'a said...

Wow lovely court house!

Have a Blessed Happy Fun
Creative Healthy Year!!!

Jackie said...

Beautiful, beautiful photos!!

Gorgeous, gorgeous, old building!!

I feel like you can tell the character of a town by it's courthouse. What character your town has!!

kml said...

What a grand staircase!

Nancy said...

What a grand court house.I could see the reflection of the TX state flag in one of the pictures.

Nancy said...

I was so amazed at the state flag so had to look again.Just realized that it isn't a reflection but a picture looking down at a painting of a map of Texas.It is so pretty.How thrilling it must have been to take these wonderful pictures.Hope others appreciate the beauty of the court house that you have captured in pictures.