Upshur County is named for Abel Parker Upshur, who was the fifteenth secretary of state of the United States from 1843 to 1844.
Surrounding Counties Courthouses:
N – Camp County
E – Morris County and Harrison County
S – Gregg County and Smith County
W – Wood County
Created: April 27, 1846 
County Seat:
Gilmer 1846 – present
County Courthouse – Gilmer
Location: 100 West Tyler Street / Henderson Street
Built: 1932 – 1933
Style: Moderne
Architect: Elmer G Withers
Contractor: James T Taylor
Description: The building faces south and is a three story buff colored brick and concrete structure. The building is located on spacious landscaped grounds in the center of Gilmer. The south front has three arches on the first story with recessed entrance. The east and west corner sections project slightly. The third story is smaller and recessed. There are yellow colored vertical panels between the windows. The roof line is flat. The building was renovated in 1974. The architect was Leland A Guinn AIA of Longview and the contractor was Besco Construction Company of Longview.
Note: The first courthouse was a log cabin built in 1846. The second courthouse was a log cabin built in 1848 and burned in 1868. The third courthouse was built by J P Ford built in 1871 at a cost of $6500 and burned in 1888. The fourth courthouse was constructed by D A Blue in 1889 at a cost of $30,000. The fifth and present courthouse was constructed at a cost of $182,923.
County Courthouse – Gilmer
Bell on Courthouse grounds
Photos taken 2010, 2017 and 2019