County Seat – Boerne
Built – 1870, with alterations in 1886 & 1909
Architect – 1870 – Zoeller & Stendeback, 1886 – C. Buckel (2nd floor) , 1909 – Alfred Giles (facade)
Style – Italinate
Photos taken – May 27, 2004
see the Historic Kendall County Jail
It was one of those wonderful clear spring days (read: NOT HOT) we have so few of in South Texas. A Sunday in May, we decided to take in a few area courthouses in the Hill Country area – including Kendall County. Boerne is an old German town, and the rock used in the buildings reflect that German heritage and the Hill country setting. The old courthouse is built of that very rock and is very old. It is the second oldest active courthouse in Texas. It isn’t ‘impressive’ as much as it is solid. It’s also small – and when you consider the tremendous growth of this San Antonio suburban county, the need for a much larger courthouse is not surprising – and that new courthouse sits across the street from the old one.
For a ‘modern’ courthouse, the new one is fairly impressive. It too, is built of the hill country rock and uses a lot of little things to reflect the community’s heritage. There’s the Texas star. And they put dormers in the metal roof.
Next to the old courthouse is the historic jail. This group of buildings makes a nice hill country stop if driving through the area.