The courthouse square is three blocks north of the railroad in a residential district. Located on the square and surrounded by houses, this courthouse with its central tower and arcaded window treatments is one of the best examples in Texas of the long reach of H. H. Richardson's Allegheny County Courthouse in Pittsburgh. Austin architect Watson understood the value of contrasting colors to this sort of Richardsonian Romanesque design, with red sandstone used to frame all of the door and window openings. The courthouse was restored in 2007 by TWC Architects with funding from the Texas Historic Courthouse Preservation Program.