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.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Henry County, Virginia and Pittsylvania County, Virginia
E – Caswell County
S – Guilford County
W – Stokes County
Created: December 29, 1785
County Seat:
Rocking han Courthouse 1785 – 1787
Wentworth 1787 – present
County Justice Center – Wentworth
Location: 170 Highway 65 / Prison Camp Road
Built: 2009 – 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 to the southeast of the center of Wentworth. 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. The building houses the County Superior Court and County District Court of the 17th Judicial District.
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 and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Wentworth. 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 housed the court. The interior has wide halls with mosaic tile floors which meet at an octagonal center area. The second floor contains the former courtroom. The building now houses the Museum & Archives of Rockingham County. 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.
See: The 17th Judicial District includes Caswell County, Stokes County and Surry County.
History: The county was created in 1785. The first court met at the home of Adam Tate at Eagle Falls in 1786. In 1787 Wentworth (Rockingham Courthuse) was selected as the county seat. The first courthouse was a wood structure built in 1787. The second courthouse was a brick structure erected in 1824 at Wentworth. The third courthouse was built in 1850 and remodeled in 1882. The architect was Lydon Swaim of Greensboro. The courthouse burned in 1906 and the fourth courthouse was constructed in 1906 to 1907 at a cost of $25,000. The building is still standing. The fifth and present courthouse (County Justice Center) was constructed in 2009 to 2011 at a cost of $39,059,000.
County Administration Building – 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. to the southeast of the center of Wentworth. The building forms a “V” shape with the entrance at the center. The second story windows ate horizontal, The roof line is flat. The building is named as the Rockingham County Government Center.

County Courthouse – Wentworth





Old County Courthouse – Wentworth



Old County Jail – Wentworth

County Administration Building – Wentworth





Photos taken 2012