Visible for miles around, the Williamson County County Courthouse, built in Classical Revival Beaux Arts styling, is the focal point of the central business district and the fifth structure to serve as the county courthouse. Austin architect C.H Page designed the building, completed in 1911, with copper dome, projecting porticoes supported by Ionic columns, and classic pediment and balustrade detailing. A renovation restoring the pediments and balustrades that were removed in 1965 was completed in 2008.
Additional Information:
Historical markers can be found around the building and the grounds, highlighting important
events and people from throughout the county. Numerous photographs of former county judges
hang around the rotunda inside, and these men made their mark on the state as well as
Williamson County. The rotunda features water fountains from a bygone era and one of the
original staircases – the other having been replaced after the 1955 elevator was removed during
the most recent renovations. The beautiful marble wainscotting is original, coming from Georgia
at a cost of $700 in 1910. The Williamson Museum offers tours of the building on Friday
afternoons.
Fun Facts
-The courthouse was the site of the first successful prosecution of a KKK member in the United States, taking place in September of 1923.
-The current building and its furnishings originally cost the county $120,000 when it was built. The restoration in 2007-2008, which restored it to its original beauty, cost more that $9 million dollars.
-Georgetown’s own suffragette, Jessie Daniel Ames, led a registration drive that brought more than 3,000 women in to the courthouse to register for the first time women were allowed to vote in Texas.
-The 1910 population of Williamson County was 42,228 - today it is more than 643,000!
Photo: Williamson County's 5th Courthouse East Side View 1980 (prior to renovations)
The cornerstone was laid in 1910 and construction was completed the following year (1911)
Photo: Williamson County's 4th Courthouse, 1878 - 1910
Designed by architects Frederick E Ruffini and Jasper N Preston. Ruffini with his brother Oscar designed over a dozen courthouses in Texas.
Contractor John Didelot completed construction in less than a year at a cost of $27,400
The structure was deemed unsafe in 1909, and plans were made for a new Courthouse
Photo: Williamson County's 2nd Courthouse from 1850-1855, a 14 X 30 ft wood frame home purchased from William Patterson for $390
The County's first courthouse was a 16ft square, one-room log house built east of the square (then referred to as the "common")
The 3rd Courthouse was a 50ft square, 2-story rubble limestone building with 2 ft thick walls and a hipped roof. Construction of the building was poor, and deemed unsafe in 1877. A new courthouse was ordered to be built.
Photo: Williamson County's 5th Courthouse East side View 2026
Grants from the Texas Historical Commission allowed the historical restoration of the interior and exterior, finished in 2007