Lamar County | US Courthouses

Lamar County is named for Mirabeau Buonaparte Lamar, who was the third president of the Republic of Texas from 1838 t0 1842.

Created: December 17. 1840

County Seat:

Lafayette 1841 – 1842

Mount Vernon 1842 – 1844

Paris 1844 – present

County Courthouse – Paris

Location: 119 North Main Street / West Houston Street

Built: 1916 – 1917

Style: Classical Revival and Romanesque

Architect: William G Barry, Edwin R Smith, Elmer George Withers and Sanquinet & Staats of Fort Worth

Contractor: J C Buchanan and J N Gilder

Description: The building faces south and is a four story stone and concrete structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of the city. The porticoes on the first story have three stone arches. The building is faced with pink granite. Columns rise from the second story to the top of the fourth story dividing the windows. A balustrade runs along the roof line. On the west side is a one story addition. The large courtroom is located on the south side of the second story.

Note: The first courthouse was built in Lafayette 1841. No courthouse was built in Mount Vernon. The second courthouse was built in Paris in 1844, the third built in 1847 and the fourth built in 1873. Fifth courthouse was a Richardson Romaneque style structure designed by Sanguinet & Messer of Fort Worth and constructed by Martin Byrne & Johnston in 1896 to 1897. The building was destroyed by fire in 1916.

Courthouses:

N – Bryan County, Oklahoma and Choctaw County, Oklahoma

E – Red River County

S – Franklin County and Delta County

W – Fannin County