Rockingham County is named for Charles Watson-Wentworth, who was the 2nd Marques of Rockingham, a British statesman and two time Prime Minister of Great Britain.
Created: December 29, 1785
County Seat:
Wentworth 1785 – present
County Justice Center – Wentworth
Location: 170 Highway 65 / Prison Camp Road
Built: 2003 – 2011
Style: Modern
Architect: Moseley Associates
Contractor: Branch & Associates, Inc
Description: The building faces northeast and is a three story red colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on spacious landscaped grounds. The northeast front has an extended brick and glass section for the entrance. There are high vertical windows on the first and second stories and the third story section has a square tower at the center. The roof line is flat. .
Old County Courthouse – Wentworth
Location: 1086 Highway 65 / Tyre Dodson Street
Built: 1906 – 1907
Style: Neo-Classical Revival
Architect: Frank Pierce Milburn of Washington DC
Contractor: B F Smith Fireproof Construction Company
Description: The building faces north and is a three story red colored brick structure. The building faces north and was completed in 1907. The north front has a central entrance on the first story and rises to a pediment above the third story. There are east and west two story wings. On the southwest there is an addition which houses the court. The building is being renovated for a County Museum. To the north of the courthouse is the old red colored brick jail.
See: The contractor, B F Smith Fireproof Construction Company, constructed courthouses in Onslow County and Tyrrell County.
See: The architect Frank Pierce Milburn of Washington, DC.
County Administration – Wentworth
Location: 321 Highway 65 / Wren Memorial Street
Built: 1985 – 1987
Style: Modern
Architect: J Hyatt Hammonds
Contractor: Allen J H Construction of Greensboro
Description: The building faces southwest and is a two story brown colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on spacious landscaped grounds. The building is named as the Rockingham County Government Center.
Courthouses:
N – Henry County, Virginia and Pittsylvania County, Virginia
E – Caswell County
S – Guilford County
W – Stokes County
Photos taken 2012