Editing Erath County, Texas (section)

===Courthouse===
Erath's original 1866 wooden courthouse burned to the ground, destroying county documents along with it. A second stone courthouse was built in 1877 but eventually razed. The cornerstone for the current courthouse was laid in 1891. The architects [[James Riely Gordon]] and D. E. Laub designed the present three-story showcase Victorian structure. In addition to Erath, Gordon designed the [[Arizona]] State Capitol, and courthouses in [[Aransas County, Texas|Aransas]], [[Bexar County, Texas|Bexar]], [[Brazoria County, Texas|Brazoria]], [[Comal County, Texas|Comal]], [[Ellis County, Texas|Ellis]], [[Fayette County, Texas|Fayette]], [[Gonzales County, Texas|Gonzales]], [[Harrison County, Texas|Harrison]], [[Hopkins County, Texas|Hopkins]], [[Lee County, Texas|Lee]], [[McLennan County, Texas|McLennan]], [[Victoria County, Texas|Victoria]] and [[Wise County, Texas|Wise]] counties.<ref>{{cite book|last=Lurie|first=Maxine N|title=Encyclopedia of New Jersey |year=2004|publisher=Rutgers University Press|isbn=978-0-8135-3325-4|author2=Mappen, Marc |author3=Siegel, Michael |page=324}}</ref> The building was completed in 1893, with limestone from the [[Leon River]] and red sandstone from [[Pecos County, Texas|Pecos County]]. The building's centralized 95-foot tower has a bell tower and creates a chandeliered atrium from the first floor to the third. The interior is east Texas pine, with cast and wrought-iron stairways, and tessellated imported marble floors. It was renovated in 1988.<ref>{{cite web|last=Herda, Ed.D.|first=Lou Ann|title=Erath County Courthouse|url=http://www.texasescapes.com/TRIPS/GreatAmericanLegendTour/ErathCountyTx/ErathCountyCourthouse.htm|work=Texas Escapes|access-date=December 15, 2010}}</ref>