Straddling Main Street, the public square is two blocks in size. The distinctive classical features of the courthouse derive from its first phase, which is now the east wing of the current building and was originally a records vault built from plans by L. S. Green for a records vault (see HL21) in Livingston. The two-story red brick structure is one bay deep and three bays in width, with corners and bays framed by shallow flat pilasters, and is topped by stone and brick bands, modillions, and a parapet. At the upper corners of each window are square stones that give the effect of a deep red wall stippled with white squares.
In 1913, the county hired the Austin firm of C. H. Page to build a courthouse, using the records vault as the east wing and adapting its style to the entire building. A west wing matches the older east wing, and they are each joined to the three-story projecting central unit by one-bay-wide entrance blocks that step forward from the wings to make the transition. The lower stone cornice on the wings is continued around the entire building. The central block finishes with a decorated attic story and is fronted by a pedimented portico carried on four monumental Tuscan columns. Page added the white stone window details and stone cornices of the original building to his design to create a harmonious whole. The courthouse was rehabilitated with funding from the Texas Historic Courthouse Preservation Program.