Leon County | US Courthouses

Leon County is named for a yellow wolf which lived in the area and was nicknamed “leon” being the Spanish word for “lion”.

Created: March 17, 1846

County Seat:

Leona 1846 – 1850

Centerville 1850 – present

County Courthouse – Centerville

Location: 204 East Saint Mary’s Street / Commerce Street

Built: 1886 – 1887

Style: Italianate

Architect: William Johnson and George Edwin Dickey

Contractor: P G Gillen of Mississippi

Description: The building faces south and is a two story red-brown colored brick structure. The building is located on spacious landscaped grounds in the center of the city. The south front has a central entrance on the first story with small one story portico with four thin columns rising to a balcony on the second story. The roof is hipped. The building was restored in 2007. The architect was Sinclair & Wright and the contractor was Phoenix I Restoration & Construction, Ltd.

Note: The courthouse is one of the oldest courthouses in Texas. On the east side of the courthouse is the old red colored brick Jail and the one story red colored brick Courthouse Office Annex. The Jail was constructed by The South Structural Steel Company of San Antonio in 1913. The Courthouse Annex was designed by Robert W Caldwell and Associates and Russell L Stogsdill Architect and constructed by Thurmond & Stuart of Bryan in 1973.

Note: The first courthouse was a two story frame structure built in 1851 at a cost of $2,200. The second courthouse was a two story brick structure built in 1858. The third and present courthouse was constructed at a cost of $28,000.

Courthouses:

N – Limestone County and Freestone County

E – Anderson County and Houston County

S – Madison County and Brazos County

W – Robertson County