Facade	Left Oblique	Right Elevation

York County Courthouse is significant as a courthouse design of prominent architect William Augustus Edwards. The courthouse is a monumental two-story yellow brick building constructed in 1914. The courthouse has the cross-axis plan common to Edwards courthouses with the façade at the south end of the longitudinal axis. The façade features a colossal Ionic tetrastyle portico, projecting from a three-bay entrance pavilion on the five-bay elevation. The portico is of stone as are the entablature and the basement story. The cornice is raked into a pediment, which features a central recessed medallion, with flanking triangular recesses, in its tympanum. The portico entablature is carried around the building, in simplified form. A broad attic story is located above the entablature. A second cornice, of bronze, is located above the attic story. This second cornice is also carried around the entire building. A hip roof, sheathed in tile, is pierced by four yellow brick chimneys. The west elevation and the rear elevation have two-story yellow brick additions which continue the proportioning of the original building without the attention to detail. The interior features tile floors with inlaid Greek key patterning, marble wainscoting and door surrounds, and stairs at both ends of the longitudinal hall. The courtroom on the second floor has a plaster vaulted ceiling, Tuscan pilasters lining the walls, and an apse at the north end, containing a wooded crossetted tabernacle frame, which serves as a backdrop for the judge’s seat. Listed in the National Register October 30, 1981.

View the complete text of the nomination form for this National Register property. In addition, the Historic Resources of Courthouses in South Carolina Designed by William Augustus Edwards includes historical background information for this and other related National Register properties.

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