Henry County Courthouse (Tennessee)
Encyclopedia
The Henry County Courthouse is located on court square in Paris
, Henry County, Tennessee
.
The building was designed by Chattanooga
architect Reuben Harrison Hunt
in the Richardsonian Romanesque
style. The design is extremely similar to Hunt's Elbert County Courthouse in Elberton, Georgia
which was completed about a year prior.
Upon completion, the building contained three courtrooms, twelve offices, five fire-proof vaults, electric lighting, low-pressure steam heating and a complete plumbing and draining system. The tower
is indicated to be 113 feet tall. The tower clock
features four dials and strikes a bell on the hour and half hour.
Renovations include the addition of an elevator, air conditioning and several other modernizations. Some of the original interior woodwork survives, including doors, balustrades
and banisters.
Two staircases in the north corners of the building reach to the third floor where a viewing gallery or balcony
looked over the second floor courtroom. This gallery and the original courtroom ceiling have been obscured by a new drop ceiling making air conditioning possible.
Portraits hang in the central hallway of Patrick Henry
, the county's namesake, and the three Tennessee governors who made their home in Paris: Isham Green Harris
, James Davis Porter
and Thomas Clarke Rye.
The courthouse lawn features several trees (three of which are dedicated to the governors mentioned above), a monument to the county's Confederate soldiers called the "Private of '61" and a Veteran's Memorial bearing the names of Henry County soldiers lost in the service of their country.
, a "No. 1 Striker," was ordered on 4 August 1896 via jeweler J. P. Jones from the E. Howard Clock Company
. $670 was paid for the clock, hands and figures, 10% of which was given to Jones. The order shipped from the Howard factory on 19 August 1896 just less than a week ahead of schedule.
Originally, two weights would have driven the time and strike trains. The clock would have been rewound manually on a weekly or semi-weekly basis. Rather than the customary cylindrical weights made of metal or concrete, the weights were actually wooden boxes filled with horseshoes and other scrap metal and built into vertical tracks. In the 1950s, the clock was electrified and now two motors drive the time and the strike trains.
The bell was cast by William Kaye of Louisville, Kentucky
. The alloy is said to contain the metal of several silver dollars donated by the citizens of Paris to give it a clearer sound. It was originally installed in the dome-shaped belfry of the Odd Fellows Female Institute, located at the corner of Market and McNeill streets in Paris, sometime after 1854. While installed at the institute, it rang for the school's purposes as well as for the Baptist church and for funerals. Six years after this building burned in 1890, the bell was installed under the cupola
of the new courthouse.
is indicated as architect and E. M. Wallen as builder along with the year 1896. On its north-facing side are the names of the building committee: I. M. Hudson, Chairman; W. A. Carter; I. W. Morgan; A. B. Lamb; M. H. Freeman; and I. A. McSwain, Secretary.
was built in 1823 in the Clifty community of Henry County, south of Paris
. The structure was built with poplar
logs in a dogtrot
configuration. The Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions was held in the north room while a member of the Chamber of Commerce sold pies and liquor in the south room.
and the planned city had been laid off with streets and blocks, a small two-story brick courthouse was built in the center of town. John Burke and Francis McConnell built this structure at a cost of $143. This building stood until 1850.
This courthouse witnessed the organizations on its lawn of the Fifth Tennessee Infantry
and the Forty-Sixth Tennessee Infantry of the Confederate States Army.
The Battle of Paris ensued west of the city on 11 March 1862 and is said to have ended with Federals retreating eastward through the town with Confederates in pursuit.
On 1 April 1862, Company F of the Fifth Iowa Cavalry arrived in Paris, commanded by Captain William A. Haw. He writes in his report:
Captain Haw later writes of his actions in attempt to guarantee that the flag remain:
The flag was removed by a Confederate Captain a few days after their departure.
In 1895, this courthouse was remarked by a grand jury as needing attention. The county court instead voted to tear the building down and replace it. The resulting replacement is the courthouse that stands today.
Paris, Tennessee
Paris is a city in Henry County, Tennessee, United States, west of Nashville, on a fork of the West Sandy River. In 1900, 2,018 people lived in Paris, Tennessee; in 1910, 3,881; and in 1940, 6,395. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 9,763. It is the county seat of Henry...
, Henry County, Tennessee
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
.
Current (1896) Courthouse
The current building is the fourth to serve in this capacity and the third to occupy the current location. The cornerstone was laid in 1896 and the courthouse was first occupied on October 2 of that year.The building was designed by Chattanooga
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga is the fourth-largest city in the US state of Tennessee , with a population of 169,887. It is the seat of Hamilton County...
architect Reuben Harrison Hunt
R. H. Hunt
Reuben Harrison Hunt , also known as R. H. Hunt, was an American architect who spent most of his life in Chattanooga, Tennessee and is considered to have been one of the city's most significant early architects....
in the Richardsonian Romanesque
Richardsonian Romanesque
Richardsonian Romanesque is a style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after architect Henry Hobson Richardson, whose masterpiece is Trinity Church, Boston , designated a National Historic Landmark...
style. The design is extremely similar to Hunt's Elbert County Courthouse in Elberton, Georgia
Elberton, Georgia
Elberton is the largest city in Elbert County, Georgia, United States. The population was 4,743 at the 2000 census. The city is the county seat of Elbert County and serves as a hub for industry and small business in Northeast Georgia...
which was completed about a year prior.
Upon completion, the building contained three courtrooms, twelve offices, five fire-proof vaults, electric lighting, low-pressure steam heating and a complete plumbing and draining system. The tower
Clock tower
A clock tower is a tower specifically built with one or more clock faces. Clock towers can be either freestanding or part of a church or municipal building such as a town hall. Some clock towers are not true clock towers having had their clock faces added to an already existing building...
is indicated to be 113 feet tall. The tower clock
Turret clock
A Turret clock is a clock mounted in a tower or turret, usually to show the current time on a dial with hand or to announce the time by strike, or both. It can also have more than one dial to show days, moon phases, and other astronomical data.-Sundials:...
features four dials and strikes a bell on the hour and half hour.
Renovations include the addition of an elevator, air conditioning and several other modernizations. Some of the original interior woodwork survives, including doors, balustrades
Baluster
A baluster is a moulded shaft, square or of lathe-turned form, one of various forms of spindle in woodwork, made of stone or wood and sometimes of metal, standing on a unifying footing, and supporting the coping of a parapet or the handrail of a staircase. Multiplied in this way, they form a...
and banisters.
Two staircases in the north corners of the building reach to the third floor where a viewing gallery or balcony
Balcony
Balcony , a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade.-Types:The traditional Maltese balcony is a wooden closed balcony projecting from a...
looked over the second floor courtroom. This gallery and the original courtroom ceiling have been obscured by a new drop ceiling making air conditioning possible.
Portraits hang in the central hallway of Patrick Henry
Patrick Henry
Patrick Henry was an orator and politician who led the movement for independence in Virginia in the 1770s. A Founding Father, he served as the first and sixth post-colonial Governor of Virginia from 1776 to 1779 and subsequently, from 1784 to 1786...
, the county's namesake, and the three Tennessee governors who made their home in Paris: Isham Green Harris
Isham G. Harris
Isham Green Harris was an American politician. He served as Governor of Tennessee from 1857 to 1862 and as a U.S. Senator from 1877 until his death....
, James Davis Porter
James D. Porter, Jr.
James Davis Porter was governor of the U.S. state of Tennessee from 1875 to 1879.-Biography:A native of Paris, Tennessee, Porter graduated from the former University of Nashville at age 18. He was elected to the Tennessee General Assembly in 1859. When the American Civil War loomed, Porter sided...
and Thomas Clarke Rye.
The courthouse lawn features several trees (three of which are dedicated to the governors mentioned above), a monument to the county's Confederate soldiers called the "Private of '61" and a Veteran's Memorial bearing the names of Henry County soldiers lost in the service of their country.
Tower Clock and Bell
The tower clockTurret clock
A Turret clock is a clock mounted in a tower or turret, usually to show the current time on a dial with hand or to announce the time by strike, or both. It can also have more than one dial to show days, moon phases, and other astronomical data.-Sundials:...
, a "No. 1 Striker," was ordered on 4 August 1896 via jeweler J. P. Jones from the E. Howard Clock Company
E. Howard & Co.
thumb|Street clock by E. Howard & Co.The E. Howard & Co. clock and watch company was formed by Edward Howard and Charles Rice in 1858 after the demise of the Boston Watch Company...
. $670 was paid for the clock, hands and figures, 10% of which was given to Jones. The order shipped from the Howard factory on 19 August 1896 just less than a week ahead of schedule.
Originally, two weights would have driven the time and strike trains. The clock would have been rewound manually on a weekly or semi-weekly basis. Rather than the customary cylindrical weights made of metal or concrete, the weights were actually wooden boxes filled with horseshoes and other scrap metal and built into vertical tracks. In the 1950s, the clock was electrified and now two motors drive the time and the strike trains.
The bell was cast by William Kaye of Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
. The alloy is said to contain the metal of several silver dollars donated by the citizens of Paris to give it a clearer sound. It was originally installed in the dome-shaped belfry of the Odd Fellows Female Institute, located at the corner of Market and McNeill streets in Paris, sometime after 1854. While installed at the institute, it rang for the school's purposes as well as for the Baptist church and for funerals. Six years after this building burned in 1890, the bell was installed under the cupola
Cupola
In architecture, a cupola is a small, most-often dome-like, structure on top of a building. Often used to provide a lookout or to admit light and air, it usually crowns a larger roof or dome....
of the new courthouse.
Cornerstone
The cornerstone is found on the northeast corner of the building. On its east-facing side, the name R. H. HuntR. H. Hunt
Reuben Harrison Hunt , also known as R. H. Hunt, was an American architect who spent most of his life in Chattanooga, Tennessee and is considered to have been one of the city's most significant early architects....
is indicated as architect and E. M. Wallen as builder along with the year 1896. On its north-facing side are the names of the building committee: I. M. Hudson, Chairman; W. A. Carter; I. W. Morgan; A. B. Lamb; M. H. Freeman; and I. A. McSwain, Secretary.
1823 Courthouse
The first courthouseCourthouse
A courthouse is a building that is home to a local court of law and often the regional county government as well, although this is not the case in some larger cities. The term is common in North America. In most other English speaking countries, buildings which house courts of law are simply...
was built in 1823 in the Clifty community of Henry County, south of Paris
Paris, Tennessee
Paris is a city in Henry County, Tennessee, United States, west of Nashville, on a fork of the West Sandy River. In 1900, 2,018 people lived in Paris, Tennessee; in 1910, 3,881; and in 1940, 6,395. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 9,763. It is the county seat of Henry...
. The structure was built with poplar
Poplar
Populus is a genus of 25–35 species of deciduous flowering plants in the family Salicaceae, native to most of the Northern Hemisphere. English names variously applied to different species include poplar , aspen, and cottonwood....
logs in a dogtrot
Dogtrot house
The dogtrot, also known as a breezeway house, dog-run, or possum-trot, is a style of house that was common throughout the Southeastern United States during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Most theories place its origins in the southern Appalachian Mountains. Some scholars believe the style...
configuration. The Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions was held in the north room while a member of the Chamber of Commerce sold pies and liquor in the south room.
1825 Courthouse
In 1825, some two years after Paris was established as the county seatCounty seat
A county seat is an administrative center, or seat of government, for a county or civil parish. The term is primarily used in the United States....
and the planned city had been laid off with streets and blocks, a small two-story brick courthouse was built in the center of town. John Burke and Francis McConnell built this structure at a cost of $143. This building stood until 1850.
1852 Courthouse
The third courthouse, designed by John Ora, was built by Calvin Sweeney at a cost of $42,000 and completed in 1852. The building was made of red brick, had two stories and included a central hall and dome. It was rectangular, the two longer facades facing north and south, and had a cross-gabled roof. A public well was located on the west side of the courthouse lawn.This courthouse witnessed the organizations on its lawn of the Fifth Tennessee Infantry
5th Tennessee Infantry Regiment
The 5th Tennessee Infantry was an infantry regiment from Tennessee that served in the Confederate States Army. Notable battle that the regiment fought in include the Battle of Shiloh....
and the Forty-Sixth Tennessee Infantry of the Confederate States Army.
The Battle of Paris ensued west of the city on 11 March 1862 and is said to have ended with Federals retreating eastward through the town with Confederates in pursuit.
On 1 April 1862, Company F of the Fifth Iowa Cavalry arrived in Paris, commanded by Captain William A. Haw. He writes in his report:
Captain Haw later writes of his actions in attempt to guarantee that the flag remain:
The flag was removed by a Confederate Captain a few days after their departure.
In 1895, this courthouse was remarked by a grand jury as needing attention. The county court instead voted to tear the building down and replace it. The resulting replacement is the courthouse that stands today.