Johnson County Courthouse

Organized in 1854, Johnson County first placed its seat of government at Wardville and then at Buchanan before moving it in 1867 to Camp Henderson, which later became Cleburne. The Buchanan courthouse was moved to the new county seat and used until 1869, when the county built a new two-story brick courthouse. By 1880 that building had become too small, and in 1883 it was replaced by a Second Empire courthouse designed by W.D. Dodson. Fire destroyed that building on April 15, 1912, and the Commissioner's Court selected German-born Otto Lang and Welshman Frank Witchell to design a new courthouse. At a time when many firms favored Beaux Arts or Late Victorian designs, Lang and Witchell preferred the increasingly popular Prairie School style inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright and Louis Sullivan. The courthouse drawings are attributed to Charles E. Barglebaugh, Lang and Witchell's project architect, who trained under Wright. Completed in 1913, the courthouse closely resembles Lang and Witchell's Cooke County Courthouse in Gainesville, Texas. Designed on a basic Beaux Arts plan but modernized with Prairie Style elements and Sullivanesque details, it features a prominent clock tower and a six-story interior atrium topped by a stained art glass dome. At the dawn of the 21st century, the courthouse remained in service as the center of county government.

Cleburne, Texas · United States