Dallas County is named for George Mifflin Dallas, who was the eleventh Vice President of the United States.
Created: March 30, 1846
County Seat:
Dallas 1846 – present
Old County Courthouse – Dallas
Location: 100 South Houston Street / Main Street
Built: 1890 – 1892
Style: Romanesque Revival
Architect: Orlopp and Kusener of Little Rock, Arkansas
Contractor: Robert L James
Description: The building faces east and is a four story red colored sandstone and blue granite structure. In the center of the building rises a high square clock tower. The building has round towers on each corner. The building is now the Museum of Dallas History and is known as the “Old Red Courthouse”. The building was restored in 2007. The architect was James Pratt Design and the contractor was Thomas S Byrne General Construction.
County Courthouse – Dallas
Location: 600 Commerce Street / Market Street
Built: 1963 – 1966
Style: Modern
Architect: The Associated Architects and Engineers
Contractor: Granite Construction Company
Description: The building faces north and is a twelve story concrete, glass and steel structure. The north front of the building has glass walls on each story divided by horizontal concrete dividers. On the south side, the east and west ends are glass and the centre of the building is a solid concrete wall with recessed sections on either side. The building faces north onto the Dallas County Historic Plaza. The building was originally named as the Dallas Government Center and was later named as the George L. Allen Sr. Courts Building and houses the Fifth Court of Appeals,
Note: The Associated Architects and Engineers comprised the following architects -Thomas D Broad, Donald S Nelson, Jack Corgon & Associates, Arthur E Thomas, Robert O Jamieson, W Ralph Merrill, E Carlyle Smith and Marshall H Warder
Old County Criminal Courthouse – Dallas
Location: 500 Main Street / South Houston Street
Built: 1911 – 1913
Style: Commercial
Architect: H A Overbeck
Contractor: Grisman and Nesbit
Description: The building faces south and is an eight story red colored brick, stone and concrete structure. The first and second stories have buff colored stone facing. The upper stories have red colored brick with stone trim. The south front has a central stone framed entrance. The windows on the second story are large. The roof line is flat.
County Criminal Courthouse – Dallas
Location: 133 North Riverfront Boulevard / Commerce Street
Built: 1982 – 1983
Style: Modern
Architect: Coe Design Group Inc. of Dallas
Contractor: Unknown
Description: The building faces east and is a nine story red colored brick, concrete, glass and steel structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds. There is a north and south section with recessed center section which has a large arch and glass walls. The roof line is flat. The building is named as the Frank Crowley Courts Building. On the west side is the Lew Sterrett Justice Center.
Courthouses:
N – Denton County and Collin County
E – Rockwall County and Kaufman County
S – Ellis County
W – Tarrant County
Pictures taken 2006, 2009, 2014 and 2017