‘Jewel of Upshur County’: Historic courthouse restoration project halfway complete | Local News

GILMER — A $15 million restoration of Upshur County’s historic courthouse is roughly halfway done, with completion slated for early 2026.

The project began in early 2024 and will transform the courthouse to its original appearance when it was built in the early 1930s. The project is financed, in part, by a roughly $5.2 million grant from the Texas Historical Commission’s Courthouse Preservation Program.

J.C. Stoddard Construction of San Antonio is the lead contractor on the project. County offices have been relocated temporarily to a complex of portable buildings across the street from the courthouse, which is at 100 W. Tyler St.

“Everything’s going very well,” said Marion County Judge Leward LaFleur, who is overseeing the project because of his experience with courthouse renovations. “We’ve had very few issues at this point and hope it stays that way. The construction company that we selected is doing a fantastic job.

“Everybody has just really pulled together on this thing. The unsung hero of the whole project is the county auditor and her office. They’ve just really gone above and beyond to make all this work out.”

Virtually all aspects of the courthouse — doors, ceilings, floors, walls and more — will be restored to their former glory. For Upshur County, that means dropped ceilings added during the 1970s will be removed to expose the original ceilings. Paint schemes will match the first ones that covered the walls and doors. A balcony in the third-floor courtroom, long hidden behind an added wall, will be reopened. A second-floor courtroom will be reopened as well.

The building will retain modern conveniences such as central heating and air conditioning, elevator service, internet infrastructure and handicap accessibility features. The fifth floor, which was the county jail for decades, will be converted to office space.

“When we get this courthouse put back together, it will most definitely be the jewel of Upshur County,” LaFleur said. “It’s going to look like no one’s ever seen that building before. It’s going to be a historical building with some modern comforts.

“It’s going to drastically change downtown Gilmer.”

In Texas, which has more courthouses than any other state, a restored courthouse can be a tourism draw, according to the historical commission. Architectural enthusiasts sometimes visit the structures. In some towns, property values around a restored courthouse have increased. Restoration projects also send money into the local economy through the purchase of materials and wages paid to local workers.

LaFleur said he would be “very surprised” if the project isn’t completed under budget, though he didn’t guess by how much.

“That’s always a very important thing to be as tedious with taxpayer dollars as you can,” he said. “I think we’re really doing that on this project.”

While no major problems have been found, a few colorful notes written by inmates in the former county jail there have provided a few laughs to construction workers.

The old jail cells have been demolished, but writing on the main wall of the building, which served as one wall of each cell, still shows some notes inmates penciled in years ago. In one spot was a tally mark, likely from someone counting down his or her days in captivity. On another was a hopefully prophetic message: “Bo + LAURA was HERE AND won’t be back! June, 1986.”

The artwork and notes that were most common, however, were references to Jesus. A sketch of Him was made on a wall, surrounded by the words of the 23rd Psalm.