On Saturday, I visited two Texas cities to the south of us. The first was Hillsboro, which is the next county seat south of Cleburne. On New Year's Day, 1993, the courthouse burned in a major fire which left only the stone walls standing. It was rebuilt and was rededicated on April 24, 1999. The building was built in 1890, and was designed by W.C. Dodson. The architectural style is Second Empire, belonging in the period of Victorian Architecture. If the building looks familiar, Dodson designed the Hood County Courthouse in Granbury and the Parker County Courthouse in Weatherford. Below are four photos of the Hill County Courthouse.
View of building through the trees from the north:
hill-courthouse1 by jtrobert, on Flickr
West Elevation:
hill-courthouse2 by jtrobert, on Flickr
View from the Southwest:
hill-courthouse3 by jtrobert, on Flickr
The blocks in Hillsboro are all very large and the ones around the Courthouse Square are divided into quarters by alleys. The front of the Courthouse is actually on Waco Street and this alley hits the Courthouse on axis with its front entrance.
alleyonaxis by jtrobert, on Flickr
The Courthouse Square has several historic buildings. This is an old Montgomery Ward store on the north side of the square.
wards-hillsboro by jtrobert, on Flickr
South side of the Square:
southside-hillsborosquare by jtrobert, on Flickr
East side of the Square:
eastside-hillsborosquare by jtrobert, on Flickr
Texas Theater (1929):
texastheater by jtrobert, on Flickr
1/2 Block to the East of the Courthouse on Elm Street are these historic buildings:
100blk-elm by jtrobert, on Flickr
The one in the center is the Smith & Tomlinson Building, and according to the date, it was built in 1896.
smith-tomlinson by jtrobert, on Flickr
Another 1/2 block to the east is the Mid-Century Modern Citizens National Bank, complete with an original neon sign.
citizensnational-1 by jtrobert, on Flickr
This is a view of the entrance and the sign:
citizensnational-sign-entry by jtrobert, on Flickr
Photo of sign:
citizens-neonsign by jtrobert, on Flickr
Finally, since we are on the subject of Mid-Century Modern, the Gulf Station on the north side of the square is in original condition.
hillsborogulf by jtrobert, on Flickr
