Created in 1835, Milam County originally extended north and west to include parts of 34 current Texas counties. Its government offices were first at Nashville-on-the-Brazos and Caldwell before Cameron became the county seat in 1846. In Cameron, two frame buildings and a two-story brick structure served as courthouses before the present building was completed. Designed by Austin architects Jacob Larmour and Arthur O. Watson in the renaissance revival style, the courthouse had its cornerstone laid by the local Masonic Lodge on July 4, 1891. The first floor contained the county courtroom and offices for county officials, while a district courtroom occupied the second and third stories. Its identical north and south facades are five-part compositions, while the east and west are three-bay designs, and each front has a projecting center pavilion with a portico and triangular pediment. A mansard roof and central clock tower rose above arched windows, cut stone pilasters, and quarry-faced ashlar limestone with fine detailing. County commissioners accepted the building as complete in April 1892, though furnishings and the clock tower were finished in the following months. In the late 1930s, a Federal renovation project by the Works Progress Adminisration removed the original roof, cupola, clock, and statue and made interior changes. The State of Texas also dedicated a statue on the grounds to mark the centennial of Texas independence and honor county namesake Ben Milam. A restoration completed in 2002 reopened the full height of the district courtroom and replaced removed features, including a stairway in the center hall and the clock tower and goddess of justice statue.