County Seat: Marshall * County Population: 68,839 (2020 Census)
The 1901 Harrison County Courthouse designed by James Riely Gordon is an excellent example of Gordon’s renowned Renaissance Revival style. The atrium showcases a stunning cast iron central staircase, original light fixtures, and colorful geometric floor tile. Harrison County received grant money from the Texas Historical Commission’s Texas Historic Courthouse Preservation Program. This grant along with matching funds allowed for a $9 million exterior and interior restoration project.
The exterior project addressed masonry, windows, and selective demolition to open up the courtroom to its original two-story splendor, and the installation of fire stairs and an elevator. The majority of the exterior work was completed in April 2005. The interior work, completed in 2009, included restoration of floor tile, architectural woodwork, the elaborate ornamental plaster and decorative painting in the atrium, and the district courtroom.
Harrison County was organized in 1842 and named for Jonas Harrison, an early settler and distinguished lawyer. The county seat honors John Marshall, former chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Following the Civil War, Marshall was known as the Gateway to Texas thanks to transcontinental railway service to the west, courtesy of the Texas and Pacific Railway.
The county’s rich history is revealed in a driving tour of Harrison County known as Stagecoach Trace, which takes onlookers to historic structures that reflect the life and times of early inhabitants.
More than 100 homes, buildings, and historic sites have been recognized by the State of Texas and by the National Trust for Historic Preservation including depots, hotels, farmhouses, and cemeteries.
The county’s unique heritage is detailed in the Harrison County Historical Museum located in the historic courthouse. The museum houses a broad collection of Caddo Indian artifacts, antique toys, Civil War memorabilia, and mementos from famous citizens of Harrison County, including Lady Bird Johnson, George Foreman, and Bill Moyers.
Visitors also frequent the Michelson Museum of Art, established in 1985 to showcase the life work of Russian American artist Leo Michelson (1887-1978).
Annual special events include the Fire Ant Festival the second weekend in October and the Wonderland of Lights beginning the Wednesday night before Thanksgiving through Dec. 30.
Among the county’s many historical markers is one that names Marshall as the birthplace of Boogie Woogie. As stated in the marker text, “According to oral tradition and documented evidence, the Boogie Woogie musical genre, with its driving, iconic left-hand rhythm, originated in the area of Marshall, Harrison County, in the early 1870s. During that decade, Marshall became the headquarters of the Texas and Pacific Railway Company and a hub for railroad transportation of cotton, timber and passengers… The driving left-hand bass patterns that are uniquely characteristic of Boogie Woogie piano, so highly suggestive of a steam locomotive chugging over iron rails, clearly are inspired and influenced by the sounds of the logging camp and the rail yard.”