Fort Bend County Courthouse
Why it's listed
Fort Bend County's courthouse at 400 Jackson Street in Richmond, Texas, was erected in 1908 from designs by C.H. Page and Brothers of Austin and built by the Texas Building Company for $75,000. It is a three-story load-bearing masonry building in the Classical Revival style, with a projecting stone-columned portico, a rusticated brick first floor, a cruciform plan around a skylit rotunda, and a copper dome topped by a statue of Miss Liberty. Additions followed in 1935 and 1957. The building matters as a fine example of the style among Texas courthouses of its period and as the dominant landmark of Richmond, a town tied to Stephen F. Austin's Old Three Hundred colonists. Its dome can be seen from miles away. The form records the importance once given to county government. It is the county's longest-serving courthouse and was the only building in town left undamaged by floods. Restoration of its public spaces was planned.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents it as a fine example of Classical Revival courthouse architecture and the visual and governmental focal point of Richmond and the county. Its domed roof makes it the tallest structure in town, visible from miles away. It also reflects the importance once placed on local county government and is the longest-serving of the county's courthouses.
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 80004119, listed March 13, 1980. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 400 Jackson St., Richmond |
|---|---|
| County | Fort Bend County |
| Listed | March 13, 1980 |
| Reference number | 80004119 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1900- |
| Architect / builder | C.H. Page and Brothers (built by the Texas Building Company) |
| Architectural style | Classical Revival |
| Areas of significance | Politics/Government, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | In government use and occupied; condition rated good and altered. An annex has been built across the street, and a major adaptive restoration is planned. |
| Acreage | 1.3 |
| Coordinates | 29.58147, -95.76173 (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 80004119.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q107318067
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.