Saline County Courthouse: A Romanesque Revival

Left: AAC staff took photos of the Saline County Courthouse in Benton with a drone. Above: Foliated terra cotta relief panels reading “1902 Saline County Courthouse” were installed above the east and west entries of the Saline County Courthouse.

A Romanesque Revival

Saline County Courthouse is a two-story building with many contrasting features.

Story and Photos by Holly Hope Heritage and Tourism

The Saline County Courthouse in Benton was built in 1902 and displays many of the typical features of Romanesque Revival. Two additions to the original building were appended to the south and north in 1939. The southern addition has been removed, and the historic façade on that elevation was exposed, while the northern wing was expanded to the west in 1983. The historic elements of the Saline County Courthouse, designed by Arkansas architect Charles Thompson, are still evident, and the one-story addition utilizes a 20th-century expression of Romanesque Revival in sympathetic materials.

Saline County was formed from Pulaski County in 1835, at which time the central city of Benton was chosen as county seat. Benton offered other advantages as a municipal center in that it was located on the Southwest Trail from Little Rock, and it offered population numbers sufficient for a government hub. Prior to 1838 court was held in available space. A school was utilized in 1835, and in 1836 a Baptist church served as a courtroom. In 1838, the first of three courthouses was built on land in Benton donated by Arkansas Gazette editor William Woodruff. The two-story brick building was of inferior construction, so it was demolished in 1856. The second courthouse for Saline County was constructed on the site in that year.

After the Civil War, Saline County enjoyed a new era facilitated by railroad construction in the 1870s. In 1900 the St. Louis and Iron Mountain Railroad in Saline County was joined by the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific railroads. The benefits from these developments led to incremental expansion in business and population. Additional positive change in the economic character of the county was ushered in with the discovery of bauxite in 1887. Together, these advances influenced the need for a larger courthouse by 1902. In that year the Saline County quorum court dedicated $4,000 for construction of a new courthouse. Arkansas architect Charles Thompson designed the Romanesque Revival building, and John Odom was construction overseer. The $31,000 courthouse was erected on the location of the previous courthouse, which was demolished.

The Romanesque Revival style in America was influenced by European architectural elements and was made popular by American architect Henry Hobson Richardson in the late 19th century. The style was considered suitable for such public buildings as courthouses because of the use of masonry construction, which could be considered less whimsical and more permanent — characteristics deemed appropriate for a seat of government. Textbook examples of Romanesque Revival include contrasting materials, round or polygonal towers with conical and pyramidal roofs, belt courses, recessed arched entries and windows, and dormers. All of these elements are displayed on the Saline County Courthouse.

Romanesque style contrasting on the two-story building is evident in the walls of yellow brick atop a rusticated granite foundation topped by a limestone belt course, which traverses the building. Further use of contrasting materials is seen in foliated terra cotta relief panels reading “1902 Saline County Courthouse” above the east and west entries. A foliated terra cotta medallion reading “1902” is situated at the second story entrance. Extensive use of towers at all corners of the building reads Romanesque, as well.

Historically, there were identical entrances on the four elevations of the building, so there was not a single, main entry.

COURTHOUSE

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Left: Staircases of dark wooden turned spindle balusters, turned drops and square sectioned newel posts are situated to the east and west of the lobby. Right: The courtroom has been modernized, but the design of the original judge’s bench has been maintained.

Today, an addition blocks the original north elevation, and the east and south entries are inaccessible, funneling public admission through the west facade. All remaining historic entrances exhibit deeply recessed arched openings embellished with brick and limestone decorative details. Windows on the courthouse are a variety of shapes and sizes, which heightens the visual interest.

A square four-story clock tower at the southeast corner is the defining feature of the courthouse. Dramatic form is provided by a mixture of arched and square windows delineated by terra cotta egg and dart details at the first and fourth floors. Four round clock faces displaying Roman numerals are situated on each elevation.

The clocks of the southeast tower were powered by electricity in the 1940s and are driven by the original 1902 movement provided by the E. Howard Company of Boston, Massachusetts. A shaft in the clock tower, which extended to the firstfloor office of the county judge contained chains to manually operate the bell. The chains have been removed, and the shaft in the judge’s office has been boxed in, but it is still visible in the tower. School groups have been allowed to view the historic apparatus, and the students have left multiple signatures on the brick walls to commemorate their visit.

Renovations to the courthouse took place in 1939. The county allocated $24,000 for two, one-story wings to the north and south of the building for jail space, offices, and storage vaults. These were sizable additions, which obscured the original arched entries; however, care was taken to utilize matching yellow brick and limestone belt courses, as well as an arched entrance on the south wing. In 1983, the jail in the north wing was expanded, but by 2007 a new jail had been constructed elsewhere, so the space was converted to county services.

Again, sympathetic materials were used and architectural resources that mimic the form of the original building were incorporated. Rusticated grey stone forms the foundation, fenestrated gabled elements at the roofline provide light, and two towers with hexagonal roofs are capped with finials similar to those on the original building. The scale and execution of the 20th-century wing is altogether appropriate, and embraces the character of the historic building.

The interior of the courthouse is simple and ties in the use of the arched forms of the exterior. Staircases of dark wooden turned spindle balusters, turned drops and square sectioned newel posts are situated to the east and west of the first-floor lobby. Original doors have been replaced, but the current paneled and glazed forms with coved surrounds and transoms are historically correct. The first floor of the lobby exhibits original, individually laid octagonal tiles. In 2014, the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program (AHPP) provided the county with a $25,269 County Courthouse Restoration grant to replicate the original tile design on the second floor. A wooden telephone booth, fully equipped with original phone and bench, was relocated from the entry hallway to the western

Left: A New Deal-era mural entitled “Bauxite Mining” is displayed on the first floor. The mural depicting bauxite miners was created in 1941 by artist Julius Woeltz under the U.S. Treasury Departments’ Section of Fine Arts public art program. Originally installed in the Benton post office, it was restored and moved to the courthouse in 1998.

stairwell. A New Deal-era mural entitled “Bauxite Mining” is displayed on the first floor. The mural depicting bauxite miners was created in 1941 by artist Julius Woeltz under the U.S. Treasury Departments’ Section of Fine Arts public art program. Originally installed in the Benton post office, it was restored and moved to the courthouse in 1998.

Four fireplaces in varying designs are located within offices of the courthouse. Rather than wood burning forms, Sanborn fire insurance maps suggest they had gas inserts. Two of the fireplaces are of identical design consisting of shallow brick fireboxes surrounded by a wooden mantel and overmantel with beveled mirror insert. Carved Ionic columns support the mantels and overmantels and they are further embellished with a foliated swag. A second form is similar, featuring Ionic columns and swag, but the overmantel was excluded. The fourth is a minimal Craftsman form with brick surround and simple wooden mantel supported by thick wooden brackets.

The second-floor courtroom has been modernized, but the design of the original judge’s bench has been maintained. The coffered hardwood bench is flanked by low paneled desks functioning as the witness bench and seating for the court reporter. The backdrop, which once provided space to store the judicial robes, features slender Ionic columns and projecting molding.

All of these details that make the Saline County Courthouse the centerpiece of downtown Benton have been consciously retained. Saline County Judge Jeff Arey said that despite any circumstance, Saline County will keep up the courthouse because they are committed to its preservation. To this end, since 2002, the Arkansas Historic Preservation Program has provided the county $103,377 for masonry repairs, a new roof, fascia and foundation repairs, water mitigation, and restoration of the tile floor. In 2019, the county applied for a $33,000 grant from the AHPP to compile a preservation plan in order to ensure that the historic character of the Saline County Courthouse is a continued objective. This is a likely circumstance as the attitude of Judge Arey is that the courthouse is an iconic building for the county, and that “as good as it gets, is as good as we are.”

Sources:

Arey, Jeff. Saline County Judge, Benton, AR. Interview with author 1/07/2020.

Craig, Jared. ‘Saline County.” The Encylopedia of Arkansas. Found at https://encyclopediaofarkansas.net/entries/saline-county-804/. Accessed 01/14/2020.

Gill, John and Marjem. “On the Courthouse Square in Arkansas.” (Place of publication no identified). 1980.

Goodspeed Firm. “The Goodspeed Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Central Arkansas.” Chicago: Goodspeed Publishing Company, 1889. Laster, Patricia Paulus. “Benton (Saline County).” The Encyclopedia of Arkansas. Found at https://encyclopediaofarkansas. net/entries/benton-979/. Accessed 01/09/2020.