Lubbock County - American Courthouses

Lubbock County is named for Thomas Saltus Lubbock, who was a Texas Ranger and soldier in the Confederate army during the American Civil War.

Surrounding County Courthouses:

N – Hale County

E – Crosby County

S – Lynn County

W – Hockley County

Created: August 21, 1876

County Seat:

Lubbock 1891 – present

County Courthouse – Lubbock

Location: 904 Broadway Street / Buddy Holly Avenue

Built: 1949 – 1950

Style: Modern

Architect: Haynes & Kirby

Contractor: Robert E McKee

Description: The building faces west and is an eight story limestone, granite and concrete structure. The building is located on the landscaped grounds of the Public Square in the center of Lubbock. The east side has a one story portico with square pillars. The west front has a central tower rising eight stories with lower north and south wings. There are vertical panels between the windows. The base of the building is pink colored granite. On the west side of the building is a park. In the interior, the courtrooms are located on the third and sixth stories. The building houses the State District Court, Constitutional County Court, County Court at Law and County Justice Court. An addition was added in 1968.In 1992, the county purchased the former Lubbock National Bank Building at 900 Main Street to the north of the courthouse and constructed a skybridge to connect the two buildings,

See: The 9th Administrative Judicial Region has a main office in Amarillo in Potter County.

History: The county was created in 1876 and Lubbock was selected as the county seat in 1891 when the county was organized. The first courthouse was a two story structure designed by Gill, Woodward & Gill and built in 1891 at a cost of $40,000. The second courthouse was a four story stone structure designed by Rose & Peterson and built in 1915 at a cost of $100,000. The building was razed in 1968. The third and present courthouse was constructed in 1949 to 1950.

Old County Administration Building – Lubbock

Location: 800 Broadway Street / Buddy Holly Avenue

Built: 1931 – 1932

Style: Neo-Classical and Italianate

Architect: James A Wetmore

Contractor: McDonald Williams Construction Company.

Description: The building faces south and is a three story red colored brick and limestone structure. The building is located in the center of Lubbock. The building was completed a Post Office and Federal Building. The first story has buff colored limestone on the first story and red colored brick on the upper stories. The south front has a projecting center section with three arches and recessed entrance on the first story and with vertical dividers on the second and third stories with recessed windows between. There is a pediment at the flat roof line.

Note: The cost of construction was $4,700,000. The building ceased to serve the federal government in 1968. The building now houses the County Administration until 1998. More recently John Thompson (Austin) and Jeff Sagansky (New York) of Elm Tree Partners and John Snyder (Oklahoma) have offered $425,000 for the 28,000 square feet (2,600 m²) building. The offer was accepted by Lubbock County Commissioners and plans are to convert the building to apartment or hotel rooms, dining, or office space.