Old Davidson County Courthouse
Why it's listed
Built of stuccoed stone, the old Davidson County Courthouse in Lexington is a temple-form building with a prostyle hexastyle portico of fluted Roman Corinthian columns. An octagonal clock tower with a semispherical roof rises above it. The front wall is left largely unbroken beneath the portico, with only a pedimented central portal and a triple arched window. The county court ordered the building in 1856, and it was placed in the northwest corner of the public square. It was remodeled extensively in 1918, and much of the original interior has been changed. A new courthouse opened in 1959, and the old building now holds a few government offices on the ground floor and a county historical society museum upstairs. The nomination describes its exterior as one of the finest in the state and one of the more important Classic Revival buildings in the South.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues that the exterior is one of the finest and most architectonic in the state, with a heroic portico, great scale and splendid proportions. It is called one of the more important Classic Revival buildings in the South. Much of the original interior has been removed.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 71000576, listed June 24, 1971. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Main and Center Sts., Lexington |
|---|---|
| County | Davidson County |
| Listed | June 24, 1971 |
| Reference number | 71000576 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | mid-19th century |
| Architectural style | Classic Revival |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | National |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition listed as good and altered. The ground floor holds a few government offices and the second story is leased to the county historical society as a museum. A new courthouse was built in 1959. |
| Acreage | 0.5 |
| Within district | Uptown Lexington Historic District |
| Coordinates | 35.82513, -80.25339 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 71000576.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7083832
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.