County Seat – Carthage
Built – 1953
Style – Modern
Architect – Preston M Geren
Photos Taken – 1/27/14
The county seat of Panola County is Carthage – deeeep in East Texas. Actually, it’s closer to Shreveport, La. than almost anything else. Carthage is somewhat known as the live music capital of Texas (along with Austin). The Texas music Hall of Fame is located here – and it was the home to a couple of country music legends – including Tex Ritter, whose monument we passed heading to Shreveport.
The courthouse is really nothing to write home about. This is straight out of the 50’s, with institutional tile on most of the stairwells. Very little to recommend this soon forgotten edifice. On the plus side – it’s been cleaned up and has a neat appearance outside, and inside there’s plenty of polished granite or marble – with a very nice map of the county inlaid on the floor as you enter. There was an old timey phone booth (no phone) in the basement, and unusual sign on the wall as you entered ‘Please Keep Your Feet Off the Wall’! I guess there’s been too much wall dancing going on in the courthouse..
Having seen the picture in The Courthouses of Texas I formerly shared your view, thinking it looked like a ’30’s radio station. Your blog forced me to reevaluate. Actually, the Panola County Courthouse IS something to write home about. It is a terrific high-quality example of early Modernism. I was reminded both of the work of the Dutch modernist Willem Dudok and the work of some of the American designers of the late 1930’s. It is NOT schlock modern. The exterior massing and solid/void relationships are nice. Thank you for taking interior pictures, as they show the exceptional use of fine materials.
Thanks for your comments and the visit of my site. I have high hopes for adding a significant number of courthouses this summer. Of course, that would take a lot of time visiting the panhandle!
When was the original courthouse torn down in carthage?