The Fairfax County CourthouseNetherton, Ross De Witt
History
The Fairfax County Courthouse
Netherton, Ross De Witt
Courthouses -- Virginia -- Fairfax County -- History; Law -- Virginia -- Fairfax County -- History
Twenty years later, in 1951-56, the courthouse again was expanded by
addition of a center block, and another wing identical with the
original and first addition segments. At the rear (west side) of these
new portions, two wings were added to house, respectively, the records
of the clerk's office and a new, larger jail. With the completion of
this construction, the old courtroom in the original wing of the
building ceased to be used regularly for judicial business. Two large
courtrooms and several smaller chambers in the center block of the
building provided facilities for hearing cases. The new and larger
building also provided space for the offices of the County's elected
officials and most of the major boards, commissions and administrative
departments which comprised the county's government in the
1950's.[160]
In both exterior and interior appearance, the courthouse additions of
1931 and 1954 were designed to harmonize with the original style James
Wren established in 1800. The use of brick, gable-end roof lines,
proportioning of the scale of various segments of the building,
compatible fenestration and colonial period styles in hardware and
painting all contributed to this result. Most influential of all in
maintaining this architectural integrity, perhaps, was the use of
archways and open arcades at the entrances to the center block and two
wings. These open arcades, with their simple, undecorated keystone
arches are the distinguishing features of the Fairfax County
Courthouse in the 1970's as they were in 1800.
[Illustration: The central entrance to the 1954 addition to the
courthouse.]
NOTES--2. THE COURT HOUSE
[139] William O'Neal, _Architecture in Virginia_, (New York: Walker,
1968), p. 17, remarks that "Traditionally, in Virginia buildings
housing civil government have been developed beyond the utilitarian.
This tradition, of course, has given us not only a remarkable group of
eighteenth and nineteenth century courthouses, but, just yesterday,
the very beautiful City Hall complex of Norfolk by Vincent King."
[140] _University of Virginia Newsletter_, (Charlottesville: Institute
of Government, University of Virginia), XLIII, No. 11, (July 15,
1967).
[141] A summary of these references is contained in Melvin Steadman,
_Falls Church by Fence and Fireside_, (Falls Church, Va.: Falls Church
Public Library, 1964), pp. 463-520.
[142] O'Neal, _Virginia Architecture_, pp. 127, 133, 143, _Minutes of
the Vestry, Truro Parish, Virginia_, 1732-1785, (Lorton, Va.: Pohick
Church, 1974), p. 114.
[143] Steadman, _Falls Church_, p. 471.
[144] The genealogy and a summary history of the Wren family, both in
England and America, is in Steadman, _Falls Church_, pp. 463-520.
[145] Janice Artemel, "James Wren, Gentleman Joiner," (unpublished
manuscript, Falls Church, Va., 1976).
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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