Page 4 - Demo

Detail from Edward Beyer’s 1855 “Panorama of Lynchburg,” showing the just-completed Court House. This is the earliest known image of the structure.
The Old Court House Celebrates Its Sesquicentennial
None of us now living can remem- ber it, but had we been citizens of Lynchburg nearly 150 years ago, the following article would have certainly captured our attention.
It appeared in the “City and State Department” of the Lynchburg Virginian newspaper for April 9, 1855:
The New Court House— According to promise we proceed to-day to give a description of this beautiful structure, which is now nearly completed.
It is of the Grecian Doric style of architecture, and was built after a design furnished by Wm. S. Ellison, Esq., Civil Engineer and Architect. It occupies very nearly the site of the old building, which was
so long an eye sore to all our citizens. It fronts to the river 52 feet and runs back 110.The defect most obvious in the plan is the want of bredth [sic] —but for this the architect
is not to be held responsible, as, with the ground at his disposition, he could not enlarge the dimensions.The portico in front projects 12 feet, and has four columns 5 feet in diameter and 30 high. The tympanum has the only clock face which the character of the building allowed to be put up. The basement, which is elevated, is of cut granite, the walls of the building of brick, stuccoed, and colored to imitate yellow sand stone. The roof and dome are covered with tin.There are projecting
pediments at the sides, and a massive cornice all round.... Its lofty and commanding
site makes it a very conspicuous object, and its towering dome is the first object that greets the eye from almost any approach to the city. On the very spot where a short time ago stood our chief disgrace, now stands our chief pride and ornament.
Obviously the writer, and pre- sumably the majority of Lynchburg’s residents, admired what had been accomplished and breathed some relief that the project was finally done. It had begun in 1849 when complaints about the old court- house in Lynchburg compelled the Common Council to take action. In the tradition of American political
2 Lynch’S Ferry