Waller County celebrated the completion and grand opening of its new $43 million, four-story courthouse on Nov. 8, 2025. Historical elements of the county’s 1894 Victorian-style courthouse were incorporated into the modern design, fulfilling the vision of embracing the future while honoring the past.
Waller County broke ground on the new state-of-the-art courthouse in March 2024 after efforts to repair the 1955 courthouse were exhausted. The new courthouse is home to the Commissioners Court along with the offices of the tax assessor-collector, county clerk, auditor, and treasurer; the building also includes space for future county departments.
Marble wall panels were saved and installed at the main wall of the Commissioners Court Courtroom, which also features a stained-glass ceiling illuminated by a cupola. Historical exterior plaques were saved and installed throughout the landscaping. The first floor main public lobby features an updated terrazzo map similar to the previous terrazzo map, which can now be viewed from the second floor lobby through the center ceiling opening.
New lantern-style fixtures located at the main entrance are fashioned from custom-made stained glass. Light fixtures displaying a top cap are replicas of the existing clock tower cupola top.
Historical nooks with special items are featured on the first and second floors, and an exterior time capsule will be housed in an above-ground concrete vault located at one of the main planter beds.
The signature bell tower and its bell, which date back to the late 1800s, were incorporated into the new courthouse, and the Military Veterans Memorial still remains on the courthouse grounds.
County Progress followed the progress of the new Waller County Courthouse in a series of articles available at https://bit.ly/waller-courthouse.
The inaugural Waller County Courthouse, known as “The Texas House,” was a frame building rented by the county for $25 per month. The county’s first jail was a one-room log cabin located on the square.
County records were moved to a brick courthouse in 1877, which burned in 1893. The third courthouse, constructed by M. Clark of Galveston in 1894, was torn down in 1955 and replaced by the fourth temple of justice, a Mid-Century Modern structure designed by Herbert Voelcker and Associates of Houston. The brick and limestone county capitol was built for $545,802.
Waller County was created in 1873 from Austin and Grimes counties and named after Virginia native Edwin Waller, a signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence and Austin’s first mayor.
Hempstead, the eventual county seat, was established in December 1856 by Richard Rodgers Peebles and James W. McDade, who organized the Hempstead Town Company to sell lots in the new town. Peebles named Hempstead after his brother-in-law, Dr. G. S. B. Hempstead.
Prairie View A&M University is located just down the road from the county seat. Established in 1876 during the Reconstruction Period after the Civil War, Prairie View A&M is the second-oldest public institution in Texas and has been recognized for its rich tradition of service.
