Bowie County - American Courthouses

Bowie County is named for James Bowie, who was a legendary knife fighter and who died at the Battle of the Alamo in 1836.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – McCurtain County, Oklahoma and Little River County, Arkansas

E – Miller County, Arkansas

S – Cass County and Morris County

W – Red River County

Created: December 17, 1840

County Seat:

DeKalb 1840 – 1841

Old Boston 1841 – 1887

Texarkana 1887 – 1891

Boston 1891 – 1985

New Boston 1985 – present

County Courthouse – New Boston

Location: 710 James Bowie Drive / Sam Houston Street

Built: 1984 – 1985

Style: Modern

Architect: Thomas-Emberton Associates Inc. of Texarkana

Contractor: T A Pritchard Company.

Description: The building faces north and is a two story buff colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of New Boston. The north front has large columns supporting an overhanging roof. The central entrance is recessed with glass walls entering into a large lobby. The windows are horizontal. The columns continue along the east and west sides of the building. The roof line is flat. In the interior, the entrance lobby rises two stories with a grand staircase on the south side. The County District Court courtrooms are located along the south side of the second story. The building houses the County District Court, Constitutional County Court and County Court at Large of the 10th Administrative Judicial Region..

See: The 10th Administrative Judicial Region has a main office in Longview in Gregg County.

History: The county was created in 1840 and DeKalb was selected as the county seat. The county seat was moved to Old Boston in 1841. The first courthouse was a brick structure built in 1841. In 1887, the county seat was moved to Texarkana. The second courthouse was built in 1887. In 1891, the county seat was moved to Boston. The third courthouse was a three story brick structure designed and built by Sommerfeld & Emmins and constructed in 1889 to 1891. The building was destroyed by arson in 1989. The old jail built in 1891 still stands on Court House Square. In 1985, the county seat was moved to New Boston and the fourth and present courthouse was constructed in 1984 to 1985.

Old County Jail – Boston

Location: South Merrill Street / West Walters Boulevard

Built: 1890 – 1891

Style: Jail

Architect: Unknown

Contractor: Unknown

Description: The building faces north and is a three story red colored brick and stone structure. The building is located on the old Courthouse Square in the center of Boston. The building is the remaining structure when the old courthouse burned in 1989.

Other Courthouses

Texarkana ( Sixth Court of Appeals )