{"nrhp_refnum":"81000635","name":"Webb County Courthouse","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1000 Houston St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Laredo","county":"Webb County","state":"TX","lat":27.50743664500004,"lon":-99.50584363999997,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1981-05-04","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A three-story county courthouse at 1000 Houston Street in Laredo, Webb County, Texas, constructed in 1909 and designed by architect Alfred Giles.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the courthouse is one of the finest examples of Alfred Giles' ability to handle new styles late in his career, combining his earlier ornate work with more modish post-1900 design. It also marks his transition from Texas to Mexican projects. It served as the social, political and financial center of the growing county and remains fairly well preserved.","narrative":"Laredo's Webb County Courthouse, built in 1909 at 1000 Houston Street, was designed by Texas architect Alfred Giles, who won a statewide design competition in February 1907. The building cost $46,918 and presents a unified, symmetrical facade of yellow brick with white stone dressings and red tile mansard roofs. Monumental arcades wrap the south front, and mansard-roofed end pavilions carry carved rams' head accents. Inside, colorful tile floors, Victorian wainscoting and a wrought iron staircase made by the Alamo Iron Works lead to a stained glass window on the first-floor landing. Some arcades have been enclosed for offices, and interior finishes have been covered or lowered over the years. The courthouse became the center of county life, holding court proceedings and records of births, marriages, deaths and land deeds. It is valued as a fine late work by Giles, marking his shift toward projects in Mexico.","period_of_significance":"1900-","architect_builder":"Mr. H. Sperbert/Alfred Giles","architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed as occupied and in fair condition; some exterior and interior alterations were made, and the county planned to build a new courthouse across the street and retain the older building for county and community use.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:19.046393-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/50/9739/40973950/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/81000635.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/81000635/701d02a9ab-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/81000635/701d02a9ab-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"AMAPO","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Webb_County_Courthouse_2007.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">AMAPO</a>, <a href=\"http://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:Webb_County_Courthouse_2007.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40973950","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Webb_County_Courthouse_(Texas)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7978646"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/webb-county/webb-county-courthouse-81000635/"}