“Old Red” Dallas County Courthouse

Occupying the block on the southeast corner of Main and Houston Streets, the “Old Red” Dallas County Courthouse was built as the sixth Dallas County courthouse in 1890–92. One of the oldest structures remaining in Dallas today, Old Red features a Romanesque Revival style built from Pecos red sandstone. Its entrances feature eight columns of Texas, and the building is capped by eight round towers that rise 118 feet. The main building itself is three stories high and features a large central platform surrounded by gargoyles. Originally the platform also held a large Howard clock with chimes, but the original bell tower with its clock was removed in 1919 because of structural damage from the hourly chiming 4,500-pound bell.

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