Lynn County Courthouse
About this property
The Lynn County Courthouse, on Public Square in Tahoka, Texas in the High Plains region of Texas south of Lubbock, Texas, was built in 1916. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. It was deemed to be "an outstanding example of the type of public architecture that appeared on the South Plains during the region's formative years." The listing included two contributing buildings: the courthouse, which included a jail when built in 1916, and a separate small jail building constructed in the 1960s. The courthouse is a three-story reinforced concrete structure with red brick veneer, designed in Classical Revival style by architect W.M. Rice. Its facade includes terra cotta, and was built by A.Z. Rodgers. The building was noted as needing repairs, which led to a $8.2 million project during 2017-2020, with services of Komatsu Architecture and contractor J.C. Stoddard Construction, and supervised by the Texas Historical Commission. In the renovation,The county chose to keep one historical reminder in the form of blood stains on a marble wall! On March 8, 1936, sheriff’s deputy F.E. Redwine was moving prisoner Elmo Banks out of his cell in the top floor of the building. Banks managed to overpower the deputy and fatally shoot him with the deputy’s own pistol. Banks took off on foot triggering a massive, two-day manhunt. He was located some 15 miles southwest of Tahoka, arrested, tried, and sent to the electric chair. Redwine’s bloodstain is still visible today, 87 years later, on the wall by the top of a staircase. It is a State Antiquities Landmark and a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark. The Lynn County Courthouse is situated on the block bounded by 1st St., 2nd St., Ave. H, and Ave. J in Tahoka. The architect William M. Rice also designed at least three other places listed on the National Register: the Lipscomb County Courthouse, on Courthouse Square in Lipscomb, Texas; the Warren and Myrta Bacon House, at 1802 Broadway in Lubbock, Texas; and the Shelton-Houghton House, at 1700 Polk St. in Amarillo, Texas.
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Questions about this property
When was Lynn County Courthouse listed on the National Register?
Lynn County Courthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on July 7, 1982.
What type of historic resource is Lynn County Courthouse?
Lynn County Courthouse is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for Lynn County Courthouse?
The period of significance for Lynn County Courthouse is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near Lynn County Courthouse?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near Lynn County Courthouse will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
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Historic places, battles, and census history across Lynn County.
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