Brazoria County - American Courthouses

Brazoria County is named for the Brazos River which flows through the county and which was called by the Spanish as “Rio de los Brazos de Dios” meaning “the river of the arms of God”.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – Harris County

E – Galveston County and Gulf of Mexico

S – Matagorda County

W – Wharton County and Fort Bend County

Created: March 17, 1836

County Seat:

Brazoria 1836 – 1896

Angelton 1896 – present

County Courthouse – Angelton

Location: 111 East Locust Street / North Velasco Street

Built: 1939 – 1940

Style: Moderne

Architect: Lamar Q Cato

Contractor: Knutson Construction of Houston

Description: The building faces south and is a five story buff colored brick and glass structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Angelton. The building has narrow vertical windows in the center of the south front. On either side, the building projects slightly and then returns to the front line. At the top of the front is a clock. On the front, metal panels depict the industries of the area being fishing, cattle, chemicals and agriculture. The roof line is flat. The building is connected by a large atrium to the modern courthouse annex on the north side. In the interior, the ornamentation is Art Deco with a large County Seal on the floor of the second story. The County District Court courtroom is located on the third story. The building houses the County District Court, Constitutional County Court and County Court at Law.

County Courthouse Annex – Angelton

Location: 111 East Locust Street / North Velasco Street

Built: 1974 – 1976

Style: Modern

Architect: Wyatt C Hedrick Architects & Engineers Inc.

Contractor: Lebco Inc.

Description: The building faces south and is a four story brick, glass and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Angelton. The building is a large box shape with glass panels on north side. The building is located on the north side of the courthouse and is connected by a large atrium which has glass walls on the east and west sides and open stairs. The wall of the courthouse forms the south side of the atrium.

See: The architect, Wyatt C Hedrick of Fort Worth also designed courthouses in Austin County, Coke County, Comanche County, Kaufman County, Kent County, Motley County, Walker County and Yoakum County.

Old County Courthouse – Angelton

Location: 100 East Cedar Street / North Velasco Street

Built: 1896 – 1897

Style: Italianate Renaissance

Architect: Eugene T Heiner

Contractor: Tom Lovell

Description: The building faces north and is a two story buff colored brick structure. The building is located on spacious landscaped grounds in the center of Angelton on the north side of the courthouse. The south front has a central entrance with small balcony on the second story with arched window. The center section projects slightly from the main building. The east and west wings also project. The roof line is flat. The building was enlarged in 1916 and 1920. The architect was John McLelland and the contractor was J A Booth. The building was restored in 1932 after a hurricane. The architect was J A Tempest. The building now houses the Brazoria County Museum.

See: The contractor, Tom Lovell of Denton, also constructed courthouses in Brewster County, Coryell County, Denton County, Hamilton County, Hardeman County, Hill County, McLennan County and Runnels County.

County West Courthouse Annex – Angelton

Location: 451 North Velasco Street / E Locust Street

Built: 2001 – 2003

Style: Modern

Architect: Diagnostics Inc. of Houston

Contractor: Coastland Construction Inc. of Angleton

Description: The building faces east and is a two story buff colored brick structure. The building is located on spacious landscaped grounds in the center of Angelton to the west of the courthouse. The building is rectangular with a raised central arched entrance on the east and west sides. The roof line is flat.

See: The 11th Administrative Judicial Region has a main office in Houston in Harris County.

History: The county was created in 1836 as one of the original 23 counties and Brazoria was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was a two story wood frame structure built in 1839. The second courthouse was a two story brick structure designed by James Riely Gordon and constructed by Thomas Lovell & Hood in 1894 at a cost of $90,000. The courthouse was demolished in 1930. The county seat was moved to Angleton in 1896. The third courthouse was constructed in 1896 to 1897 and is still standing. The fourth and present courthouse was constructed in 1939 to 1940. The County Courthouse Annex was constructed in 1974 to 1976. The County Courthouse West Annex was constructed in 2001 to 2003.