Pulaski County Courthouses: Ornate Beauties

Left: The Richardsonian Romanesque portion of the Pulaski County Courthouse was built in 1889, Top: he interior of the 1889 courthouse features double quarter-turn staircases make of heavy Eastlake cast-iron newel posts and castiron balustrades. Bottom: Both the 1889 and 1914 courthouses have many ornate features.

Ornate Beauties

Each visit to the Pulaski Courthouses reveal new architectural details.

Story and photos by Holly Hope Arkansas Historic Preservation Program

The Pulaski County Courthouse in Little Rock consists of an original 1889 Richardsonian Romanesque building and a 1914 annex constructed in the Beaux Arts style. Both are strikingly beautiful examples of the most popular institutional architecture of their time.

Pulaski County was created from the former Missouri Territory in 1818 and was named for Polish Count Casimir Pulaski, who died in the Revolutionary War Battle of Savannah in 1779. County business was originally conducted in the Little Rock Statehouse, constructed in 1842. A building dedicated to a county courthouse was necessary by 1883, as the Statehouse was needed for state government. After a period of occupying a residence and a church, land at the corner of Spring and Second streets was acquired for a two-story building with a basement dedicated solely to Pulaski County government.

The Richardsonian Romanesque style was chosen for the new courthouse and architect Max Orlopp, Jr. provided the design. Granite from the Fourche Mountain subdivision in the Ouachita Mountains was chosen for the form, and Orlopp provided a typically exuberant presentation. Contrasting details were exhibited through the use of

Left: Increasing population numbers necessitated the construction of a new courthouse North of the 1889 building. It was constructed in the Classical Beaux-Arts style and completed in 1914. Right top: The center rotunda of the 1914 building opens to the second floor and is lit by an intricate stained glass dome that doubled as a skylight. Right middle: The entrance is accessed via three centered arches featuring transom fans infilled with decorative iron grills above glass double-doors embellished with ironwork. Masculine stonework faces, or mascarons, ornament the keystones above each entry arch. Right bottom: Decorative elements abound in both buildings.

limestone belt courses, arches and window lintels and deep red terra cotta gables, cornice molding and columnettes with Corinthian capitals. The complex roof configuration was originally slate, but by 1979 it had been replaced with composition shingles. In 2004, the county received a $140,000 grant from the Department of Arkansas Heritage to reinstall a slate roof.

Three corners of the building feature round two-story towers with conical roofs topped with iron finials. Asymmetry is introduced on the southeast corner through the use of a four-story square clock tower with domed roof. In 1961 storm damage necessitated the removal of the top two levels of the tower. In 1995 the Department of Arkansas Heritage provided $90,000 in grants to restore the tower to its original appearance, including the four clock faces for each cardinal direction and the terra cotta seal of the state of Arkansas.

The interior of the 1889 courthouse was appropriately appointed with the most current fittings. Double quarterturn staircases feature heavy Eastlake cast-iron newel posts and cast-iron balustrades exhibiting a curving floral design. The iron risers of the stairs display a fish scale pattern. Matching arches to the east and west of the lobby area are constructed of highly glazed brown bricks with plaster keystones at the crown.

By the turn of the century the original courthouse had become too cramped. Increasing population numbers and the annexation of Argenta (later renamed North Little Rock) as the city’s eighth ward taxed the efficiency of the 1889 building. It was decided that a new courthouse would be built north of the original courthouse to provide

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office space, additional courtrooms and judges’ chambers. A passage was appended to the northeast corner providing access to both buildings.

The Classical Beaux-Arts style was chosen for this addition, which was often referred to as the Annex. In 1912, architect George Mann, known for his design of the Arkansas State Capitol, was selected to draw plans. Contractor A.O. Campbell completed the four-story courthouse constructed of Batesville limestone in 1914 at a cost of $566,000.

The building presents a massive, symmetrical form and Roman architectural elements. The first floor of the main, northern facade is delineated from the upper two stories through the use of rusticated stonework. Windows on that level are arched with multi-paned lights. The entrance is accessed via three centered arches leading to a recessed portico. Each arch features transom fans infilled with decorative iron grills above glass double-doors embellished with ironwork. Masculine stonework faces, or mascarons, ornament the keystones above each entry arch, while the keystones above each window display simple scroll patterns.

The second and third stories are composed of smooth limestone blocks and rusticated quoins. Seven rectangular 42 light windows light the second and third stories. On the second floor, rounded stone drip molds top the windows at the east and west side bays of this façade while the five center windows are topped with gabled drip molds. The center windows are flanked by two-story Ionic pilasters. Short urn balustrades situated in front of each second-story window, provide visual separation from the first floor. The third floor windows break with the uniformity as they do not utilize drip molds.

At the roofline the wide center cornice is carved with the words “PULASKI COUNTY COURTHOUSE.” Egg and dart detailing and a line of thick modillions beneath a projecting cornice span the northern elevation and the east and west side bays. An urn balustrade surrounds the shallow, metal hip roof on all elevations, concealing the fourth floor windows. The rooftop centerpiece of the north façade features male and female figures flanking a shield carved with the date 1912. The shield is embellished with fruit and floral swags.

The interior of the 1914 courthouse is equally as ornate as the Classical exterior. The center rotunda opens to the second floor and is lit by an intricate stained glass dome that doubled as a skylight. The second floor opens to the lobby through coffered arches lined with rosettes, each of which hold a clear lightbulb. Sculptural groupings carved by Italian sculptor Giusto Liva and his two sons, Paul and John, are situated at each corner of the rotunda. The sculptures representing art, justice, agriculture and machinery are placed atop a classical arrangement of architrave, frieze and cornice supported by two-story pink marble Corinthian columns. White marble urn balustrades fill the open arches. The rotunda features a radiating floor pattern of contrasting pink, grey and brown marble, in the center of which is a bust of Count Pulaski. Other details include scallop shell niches in the rotunda, elevator indicator plaques featuring bas-relief cornucopias, marble and oak wainscoting, barrel vaulted stairwells and plaster bas-relief carving in arch spandrels. The decorative elements abound in both buildings and provide the pleasure of revealing new details with each visit. Since 1979, Pulaski County has received $319,459 in grants from the Department of Arkansas Heritage for the restoration and preservation of the original 1889 courthouse and the 1914 annex. Pulaski County celebrated its 200th anniversary on Dec. 4, 2018. Featured speakers included Pulaski County Judge Barry Hyde, Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola, and Department of Arkansas Heritage Director Stacy Hurst. Commemorative events will continue throughout 2019.

Among the many programs and services of the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program is the County Courthouse Restoration Grant Program. Created in 1989, this grant program has helped to extend the lives of courthouses that hold vital links to community pride and local history. These grants are funded through the Real Estate Transfer Tax, administered by the Arkansas Natural and Cultural Resources Council. Since the beginning of the program, the AHPP has awarded $24,721,298 to 79 historic courthouses and courthouse annexes around the state for use in rehabilitating, preserving and protecting these important historic resources. Since 1979, Pulaski County has received eight grants totaling $319,459 for the Pulaski County Courthouse in Little Rock. AHPP County Courthouse Restoration Grants awarded for Pulaski County Courthouse

FY1979 Preparation of development documents; Renovate and restore courthouse $25,000

FY1990 Clock tower restoration $38,000

FY1991 Clock tower $20,000

FY1992 Clock tower restoration, windows $22,000

FY1993 Clock faces $11,000

FY2004 Roof (slate) $140,134

FY2006 Roof repair for 1914 addition $46,200

FY2009 Condition assessment of skylight (1914 addition) $17,125