Northampton County is named for James Compton, who was the 5th Earl of Northampton and a British peer and politician.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Brunswick County, Virginia, Greensville County, Virginia and Southampton County, Virginia
E – Hertford County
S – Chowan County and Halifax County
W – Halifax County and Warren County
Created: 1741 
County Seat:
Jackson 1741 – present
Old County Courthouse – Jackson
Location: 104 West Jefferson Street / Depot Street
Built: 1858 – 1859
Style: Greek Revival
Architect: Henry King Burgwyn
Contractor: Azaiah J Riggs of Goldsboro
Description: The building faces south and is a one story red colored brick structure with elevated basement. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Jackson. The south front has high wide steps to the large portico on the second and third stories. There are four white colored columns that rise to a wide pediment. The north section extends east and west with a section extending north. On the north side is a three story red colored brick section. In the interior, the former courtroom is located on the main story. The supervisor was Samuel Calvert. The building was renovated in 1938 to 1939. The architect was A Mitchell Wooten and John J Rowland. The building was renovated in 1991. The architect was William Surley Vanis and the contractor was C D Williams Construction Company. The building was renovated in 2002 to 2003. The architect was Surapon Sujjanavich and the contractor was Mayhew Brothers, Inc. On the east side is the one story white colored brick County Commissioners’ Office.
Note: The building had been painted white and in 2002, the paint was removed to show the original red colored brick.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Northampton County Courthouse
County Courthouse – Jackson
Location: 128 East Jefferson Street / Atherton Street
Built: 2022 – 2024
Style: Modern
Architect: Oakley Collier Architects of Rocky Mount
Contractor: A R Chesson Construction Company, Inc. of Wilmington
Description: The building faces south and is a two story red colored brick, glass and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Jackson. The roof line is flat. In the interior are the County Superior Court courtroom and the County District Court courtroom. The building houses the County Superior Court and County District Court of the 6th Judicial District.
See: The 6th Judicial District includes Bertie County, Halifax County and Hertford County.
History: The county was created in 1741 and Jackson was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was a brick structure erected in Jackson in 1742. The second courthouse was also a brick structure erected in 1825. The third courthouse was constructed in 1858 to 1859 at a cost of $10,000 and is still standing. The fourth and present courthouse was constructed in 2022 to 2024 at a cost of $14,000,000.
Old County Courthouse – Jackson
County Superior Court courtroom
County Commissioners’ Office – Jackson
Photos taken 2012
Images 12*