{"nrhp_refnum":"79001708","name":"Gaston County Courthouse","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"N. York and S. South Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Gastonia","county":"Gaston County","state":"NC","lat":35.26325805600004,"lon":-81.18427558699995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1979-05-10","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Politics/Government","Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story Neo-Classical Revival county courthouse in the center of Gastonia's commercial district, Gaston County, North Carolina, designed in 1909 by Milburn and Heister and completed in 1910.","why_significant":"The courthouse reflects the 1909 county vote that moved the county seat from Dallas to Gastonia, and it represents the work of the prolific architectural firm Milburn and Heister. It keeps the firm's typical Neo-Classical Revival features, though the proportions are described as an awkward transition between the firm's earlier Rockingham County and later Hoke County courthouses.","narrative":"Gaston County's courthouse in downtown Gastonia is a three-story Neo-Classical Revival building designed in 1909 by the Washington firm Milburn and Heister and finished in 1910 at a cost of about $60,000, including the jail. It replaced the courthouse in Dallas, the earlier county seat, after years of dispute. A county-wide election in 1909 favored Gastonia, helped by local pledges of $43,000 against $21,000 offered by Dallas supporters. Frank P. Milburn planned more than 250 major structures across the South. The building shows the firm's usual features: tan brick walls, pedimented porticoes on Ionic columns, a heavy modillion and dentil cornice, and three-sided pavilions on the side elevations. Its proportions are considered awkward, with a narrow portico that looks out of scale. A 1954 renovation by Ronald Green enlarged windows and remodeled the interior, and a rear addition detracts from the design. It sits beside City Hall.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Milburn and Heister of Washington (Frank P. Milburn); 1954 renovation by Ronald Green","architectural_style":"Neo-Classical Revival","criteria":[],"status_note":"Renovated in 1954, with enlarged windows and a completely remodeled interior; a rear addition is described as poorly planned. Surrounding area has declined due to parking lots and poor maintenance.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:56.558604-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/45/7178/47717845/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/79001708.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79001708/e419bea1ff-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/79001708/e419bea1ff-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Upstateherd","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Historic_2nd_Gaston_County_Courthouse_-_Gastonia,_NC.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Upstateherd</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:Historic_2nd_Gaston_County_Courthouse_-_Gastonia,_NC.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"03001375","name":"Downtown Gastonia Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/north-carolina/downtown-gastonia-historic-district-03001375/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47717845","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaston_County_Courthouse","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q18706138"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/gaston-county/gaston-county-courthouse-79001708/"}