{"nrhp_refnum":"71000611","name":"Old Orange County Courthouse","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"106 E. King St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Hillsborough","county":"Orange County","state":"NC","lat":36.09299564400004,"lon":-79.09857159999996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1971-06-24","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story, temple-form brick courthouse at 106 East King Street in Hillsborough, Orange County, North Carolina, built in 1845 by local builder Captain John Berry.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the building is an outstanding example of American Classic Revival architecture, citing praise from architectural writers Thomas Waterman and Talbot Hamlin. It also served as the seat of Orange County government from 1845 until 1954 and was built by a prominent local builder who worked on other notable buildings.","narrative":"Built in 1845 on public lot number 1 in Hillsborough, the old Orange County Courthouse is a two-story brick building laid in Flemish bond, with a Doric portico of four columns on the north front and a two-stage clock tower topped by a dome. Inside, a stair hall leads to a central hall, and a large courtroom on the second floor still keeps many original fittings, though most other interiors were replaced in a late nineteenth century renovation. Captain John Berry, a Hillsborough native, politician and builder, constructed it. He also built Eagle Lodge and Smith Hall at the University of North Carolina, among other works. The courthouse housed county government until a new building opened in 1954. Since 1957 it has held the Orange County Historical Museum. Architectural writers Thomas Waterman and Talbot Hamlin praised it as an exceptional example of American Classic Revival design, which is the main basis for its listing.","period_of_significance":"19th Century (specific date 1845)","architect_builder":"Captain John Berry (builder)","architectural_style":"Classic Revival / Greek Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Excellent condition; owned by the county and used as a museum since 1957, also housing Board of Education offices at the time of nomination.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:57.1698-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/48/7216/47721648/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/71000611.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/71000611/1ca60b36ae-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/71000611/1ca60b36ae-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Jerrye &amp; Roy Klotz, MD","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:OLD_ORANGE_COUNTY_COURTHOUSE,_HILLSBOROUGH,_ORANGE_COUNTY.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jerrye &amp;amp; Roy Klotz, MD</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:OLD_ORANGE_COUNTY_COURTHOUSE,_HILLSBOROUGH,_ORANGE_COUNTY.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47721648","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Orange_County_Courthouse_(North_Carolina)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q19817699"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/orange-county/old-orange-county-courthouse-71000611/"}