Concho County Courthouse, Paint Rock Texas

South elevation

A mid-December trip to Lubbock to attend the Texas Tech graduation ceremony provided an added bonus of travelling roads I had never travelled before. My favorite find was the Concho County Courthouse, which I later found to be one of the Second Empire Ruffini Architectual Triplets.

North door, appears to no longer be in use

The building had a familiarity to it, but I missed all the clues and had to wait until I returned home to find that it was designed and constructed using the same plans as the Sutton County Courthouse and the Old Blanco County Courthouse. All three are laid out on a cross axial plan featuring tall, narrow windows and two interior staircases; the Concho County building is considered the most elaborate in detail. Click on the link above to see pictures of each building.

Mansard roof south elevation

 Built in the Second Empire style much favored for public buildings of the period, its dominant visual feature is its characteristic Mansard roof, treated with much greater elaboration than some of its contemporaries such as F.E. Ruffini’s Blanco County Courthouse. (quoted from the National Register of Historic Places nomination, added 1977)

The design is attributed to Frederick E. (Ernst) Ruffini, but in truth the plan is an adaptation of W.W. Larmour's design for the Tom Green County 1885 Courthouse in San Angelo, Texas. Ruffini's brother, Oscar, had established a practice in San Angelo and was serving as supervising architect for the courthouse construction. He sent the plans and a photograph of the building to Ernst who modified them for the Old Blanco County Courthouse and for the Concho County Courthouse. Both brothers used the plans to design several other courthouses which have all been demolished except for the Sutton County Courthouse.  When Ernst passed away in late 1885 Oscar oversaw the completion of the Concho County Courthouse.

South elevation - when I looked through the door I could see a beautiful staircase decorated for Christmas! 

Bonds in the amount of $28,000 were issued at 8% interest to fund the project after Kane & Cormack Contractors and Builders were awarded the construction contract. Rusticated stone from a nearby quarry was used in the construction. As the project neared completion under Oscar Ruffini's supervision County Commissioners contracted with a Chicago firm to furnish the courthouse for a sum of $1,212.

North elevation

The building appears to be in excellent condition and very well preserved.  The only significant modification to the structure is the addition of a vault on the east side of the building (see the south elevation picture). Truly an architectual gem!

Just to note: I do plan to return when the building is open and see if I can make photographs and find pictures from the past on display.

Architectural Triplets

The Concho County Courthouse, the Old Blanco County Courthouse and the Sutton County Courthouse are architectual triplets.  Not identical, but still close matches (pictures below). All three are designed in the Second Empire style with the Concho courthouse being the most elaborate in detail. Each one is laid out on a cross axial plan and features tall, narrow windows and 2 interior staircases.

This design has an interesting story of its own that's worth noting here.  Oscar Ruffini was serving as the supervising architect for the Tom Green County Courthouse (San Angelo) that was designed by W.W. Larmour.  He sent the plans and a photograph of the project to his well known brother, F.E. (Ernst) Ruffini, who took them and modified them for the Old Blanco courthouse and for the courthouses in Callahan and Concho Counties.  Oscar took the plans and used them to design the Sutton and Mills County Courthouses.  I have to note that several references referred to this sharing of the original plan as "borrowing" or "used without permission"!

Concho and the Old Blanco courthouses were completed in 1886; Ernst passed away during construction and Oscar was appointed to serve as the supervising architect to complete the Concho courthouse. Sutton was completed in 1891. 

A post about the Concho County Courthouse will be up soon as well as updates to earlier posts on the Old Blanco County Courthouse and the Sutton County Courthouse. 

Concho County Courthouse

Old Blanco County Courthouse

Sutton County Courthouse

Sutton County Courthouse

The Sutton County Courthouse is located in Sonora Texas. This is the only courthouse that Sutton County has had since it selected Sonora as its county seat in 1890. It exemplifies the Second Empire style with its mansard roof, dormer windows, and detailed cornices. As typical with this style of architecture it is based on a square design plan.

The courthouse was designed by Oscar Ruffini.  He and his brother, Frederick Ernst Ruffini, designed many courthouses and public buildings in Texas.  The brothers were from Cleveland, Ohio, but settled in Texas with Oscar in San Angelo and F.E. (or Ernst) in Austin.   F.E. designed many buildings now lost to time, including the Old Main Building on the University of Texas Austin campus.  
 
The design for the courthouse has an interesting story.  Oscar was the supervising architect for the Tom Green County Courthouse (San Angelo) that was designed by W.W. Larmour.  Oscar sent the plans and a photograph of the project to F.E. who modified them for the Old Blanco County Courthouse that was completed in 1886 and for the courthouses in Callahan and Concho Counties.  Oscar took the plans and used them to design the Sutton and Mills County Courthouses.  I have to note that several references referred to this sharing of the original plan as "borrowing" or "used without permission"!

I was amazed at the similarities between the courthouses when I compared Blanco with Sutton.

The years had taken their toll on the courthouse and a comprehensive restoration was undertaken with help from a grant through the Texas Historical Commission.  Missing roof dormers and roof cresting were recreated from historic photographs; all the windows were restored and interior woods stained to match the original stain.  Restoration Associates has pictures on their web site of the gold and copper leaf wall stenciling that was restored and of one of the Diebold vault doors that was painstakingly restored.  Modern enhancements on the interior of the building to the electrical and plumbing systems were sensitively merged into the design to bring the building up to safety codes and modern standards.  VOH Architects have before and after pictures on their web site and the difference is amazing!  I'm grateful that the commitment was made to save the building and restore it rather than to tear it down and re-build.