Austin County is named for Stephen F Austin, who was the person who facilitated the Anglo American colonization of Texas.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
E – Waller County and Fort Bend
S – Wharton County
W – Colorado County and Fayette County
Created: March 17, 1836 
County Seat:
Bellville 1837 – present
County Courthouse – Bellville
Location: 1 East Main Street / Holland Street
Built: 1960 – 1962
Style: Modern
Architect: Wyatt C Hedrick of Fort Worth
Contractor: Krebs Construction, Inc. of Houston
Description: The building faces west and is a three story square concrete, granite and glass structure. The building is located in the center of the Public Square in the center of Bellville. The first story is glass with narrow metal dividers. The second and third stories are faced with white colored stone and have no windows. There is a clock on the east and west sides of the building. A black colored stone wall extends on the north and south sides. The roof line is flat. In the interior, the large courtroom is located on the third story and the small courtroom is located on the second story. The building houses the State District Court, Constitutional County Court and County Court at Law.
See: The architect, Wyatt C Hedrick of Fort Worth also designed courthouses in Brazoria County, Coke County, Comanche County, Kaufman County, Kent County, Motley County, Walker County and Yoakum County.
See: To the south of the courthouse is the old County Jail constructed in 1896 by Pauly Jail Building Company at a cost of $19,970.. The building is now a museum.
Note: The county is one of the original 23 counties created in 1836.
History: The county was created in 1836 and Bellville was selected as the county seat in 1837. The first courthouse was a one story wood frame structure built by Benjamin L Clark in 1848. The second courthouse was a one story frame structure built by Sam Shelburne in 1850. The third courthouse was built by Philip M Cuny in 1855. The fourth courthouse was designed by Eugene Thomas Heiner and constructed by Henry Kane of Gonzales in 1887 at a cost of $37,500. The fifth and present courthouse was constructed in 1962 to 1963 at a cost of $511,000.
County Courthouse – Bellville
Commissioner Minutes
Old County Jail – Bellville
Photos taken 2006 and 2014