County Seat – Denton
Built – 1896
Architect – W. C. Dodson
Style – mixed, predominately 2nd Empire
Like Colin County – Denton County is a fast growing area, with much of the growth coming from nearby DFW. It is also the home to 2 universities (North Texas and Texas Womans Universities). So, like Collin County, Denton County has built a large new courthouse to accomodate the growth and increased demands. But what is different is that while much of the historic Denton Courthouse is now a wonderful museum, the administrative County Court still meets here, meaning that it is still rightfully called the courthouse. This is much like what the County did in Cameron County, as well, once their historic courthouse was restored.
This may seem like a small matter, but when you have a beauty such as the Denton County Courthouse, it should not be diminished by any trivial arguments. This has been and still is the courthouse of the county. If you fail to include Denton on your courthouse trail, then you will miss one of the top courthouses in all of the state. It has all kinds of toweres and each corner presents a balcony on each of the buildings floors. Marble columns are everywhere and the contrasting stone helps set off different highlights. Detail abounds.
And that’s just outside. Inside is a 19th century wonderland of style, flooring, ceilings, lighting – you get the picture. This is the complete package and rightfully dominates this booming college town.
As mentioned – Denton County has built a new administrative and courts building located about a 1 mile fromt he town square. It is modern, with a few small classical touches. Nothing to right home about, but neither is it offending as some modern buildings seem to have been. I’ve included a slide show of that courthouse below.
