Clay County is named for Henry Clay, who was an American statesman, U.S. Senator and Congressman from Kentucky 1806-1852, U.S. Secretary of State 1825-1829, three times Speaker of the House and three times candidate for president.
Surrounding County Courthouses:
N – Quitman County
E – Randolph County and Calhoun County
S – Early County
W – Henry County. Alabama
Created: February 16, 1854 
County Seat:
Fort Gaines 1854 – present
County Courthouse – Fort Gaines
Location: 210 Washington Street South / Hartford Road
Built: 1871 – 1873
Style: Italianate Renaissance Revival and Neo-Classical Revival
Architect: Unknown
Contractor: Unknown
Description: The building faces west and is a two story white colored brick and wood frame structure. The building is located on landscaped grounds in the center of Fort Gaines. The west front has a small portico with balcony on the second story and supported by two brick pillars. The roof is hipped. The interior has pine floors. The County Superior Court courtroom is located at the center of the second story. The seven spectator benches on each side of the single aisle have only fleur-de-lis end posts relieving their plainness. The building houses the County Superior Court of the 2nd Judicial District. The building was renovated in 1939 by the Works Project Administration. On the east side is the two story Old Sheriff Residence.
See: National Register of Historic Places – Clay County Courthouse
History: The county was created in 1854 and Fort Gaines was selected as the county seat. The courthouse is the first and only courthouse erected in the county. The building is the oldest courthouse still in use in Georgia. The County minutes in Book B refer to the building of the courthouse on pages 195, 298, 335, 380 and 381, however, there is no mention of the names of the laborers working on the construction which took several years to complete.
County Courthouse – Fort Gaines
County Superior Court courtroom
County Minutes – Book B
Old Sheriff Residence
Photos taken 2009 and 2020