Donley County's 1891 Courthouse Is Still in Use Today

Clarendon became the county seat when Donley County was organized in 1882. The courthouse standing today was completed in 1891. It was designed by the firm of Bulger and Rapp in the Romanesque Revival style. One unusual feature: no two sides of the building look the same. The Texas Historical Commission notes the building is the courthouse that has served the Texas Panhandle longest among those still in active use.

A tornado in the 1930s knocked off the original third floor and tower. For decades the building showed its age — water got in and bats moved in too. A restoration project, funded in part through the THC's courthouse preservation program, rebuilt the third floor and was completed in July 2003. You can visit it today in downtown Clarendon.