06/02/2026
The 1902 Newton County Second-Empire-style courthouse is a three-story brick structure featuring a clock and bell tower, mansard roof, and corner quoins. Notably, the clay for the brick was mined from nearby Caney Creek, then molded and fired right on the courthouse square, making the building literally built from its own land. It replaced an earlier courthouse built in 1853.
The courthouse square has witnessed significant moments in history, including a political speech delivered by the future Governor of Texas, Dan Moody, in 1926. That same year, a monument was dedicated on the courthouse lawn honoring Reverend Henry Stephenson, reputed to have preached the first Protestant evangelical sermon in the State of Texas. The original tower housed a faux clock until 1929, when local benefactors donated a real four-faced clock in honor of Dr. J.S. Peavy and his wife, Maryann Fuller.
A catastrophic fire on August 4, 2000, destroyed much of the interior and collapsed the bell tower. The courthouse was subsequently reconstructed and restored to its 1936 exterior and 1925 interior appearance, with a new steel and aluminum bell and clock tower installed in May 2009. The project was completed in 2012 and rededicated on December 8, 2012 in Newton.
Newton County received over $4.4 million in grants through the Texas Historic Courthouse Preservation Program (THCPP). The courthouse has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1997 and was designated a State Antiquities Landmark in 1981 and a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1974.
Learn more about how the THC helps preserve these landmarks through the THCPP at thc.texas.gov/courthouses
