{"nrhp_refnum":"76002017","name":"Comal County Courthouse","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"N. Sequin Ave.","address_restricted":false,"city":"New Braunfels","county":"Comal County","state":"TX","lat":29.704042036000033,"lon":-98.12465602399999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1976-12-12","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Romanesque Revival county courthouse on North Seguin Avenue in New Braunfels, Comal County, Texas, built in 1897-1898 to designs by architect J. Riely Gordon.","why_significant":"The nomination cites its beauty, style and link to J. Riely Gordon, one of the most talented nineteenth-century architects in Texas. It is an outstanding example of Romanesque Revival design built of local limestone that harmonizes with other buildings in the community. Its siting off the public square also reflects the German town-planning tradition of New Braunfels.","narrative":"Comal County Courthouse, on North Seguin Avenue in New Braunfels, was built in 1897-1898 to designs by San Antonio architect J. Riely Gordon after the county's earlier courthouse was judged dilapidated and unsafe. Fischer and Lambie of Austin won the construction contract at $36,900. The building follows Gordon's Greek-cross plan, with a central stairwell that vented hot air through the tower. Its walls are light gold native limestone with pitch-faced ashlar, carved dormer columns, pink granite entrance columns and Sullivanesque capitals. Because the town was laid out by German settlers with the square reserved as a market place, the courthouse sits across from the square rather than on it. A jail annex was added in 1930 and the interior was remodeled in 1966, yet the iron stairway, much of the woodwork and flooring, and most of the exterior remain original. It is valued as a fine example of Romanesque Revival design in regional stone.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":"Architect J. Riely Gordon; contractors Fischer and Lambie of Austin; A. C. Moeller (jail, 1930); Jeremiah Schmidt (jail addition design and 1966 remodeling)","architectural_style":"Romanesque Revival (Richardsonian Romanesque)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied and in use as a government building; the roofing has been replaced, an east addition and a 1930 jail annex were made, and the interior was remodeled in 1966, though most original exterior fabric remains.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:18.98975-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/57/9715/40971557/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/76002017.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76002017/664156a570-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/76002017/664156a570-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY 4.0","author":"Larry D. Moore","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Comal_courthouse.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Larry D. Moore</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Comal_courthouse.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"100012669","name":"Central New Braunfels Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/texas/central-new-braunfels-historic-district-100012669/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40971557","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comal_County_Courthouse","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5150492"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/comal-county/comal-county-courthouse-76002017/"}