111-year-old Texas courthouse destroyed in huge fire, video shows. ‘Terrible tragedy’
A fire engulfed and destroyed a century-old courthouse Thursday, leaving a rural Texas community in disbelief.
The fire began around 10 p.m. Thursday in Mason, which is about 110 miles away from Austin. Only the rock structure of the courthouse, built in 1910, was standing by 1:30 a.m., Mason County Judge Jerry Bearden told KXAN.
The Texas State Fire Marshal announced Friday afternoon it was joining the investigation with a K-9 team. The county judge said arson is suspected in the courthouse fire and another at a nearby home, the Associated Press reported.
Drone photos captured the destroyed building from above.
The courthouse is on the National Register of Historic Places and is the third in the county to burn down — following previous fires in 1872 and 1900, the Fredericksburg Standard reported.
“It’s like losing a member of your family,” he told the Standard.
The courthouse was mostly empty, as renovations were set to begin this year, according to Fox 7.
No one was hurt in the fire, according to the Texas Historical Commission.
“What we have left are 110-year-old walls,” Bearden told KXAN. “It’s a terrible tragedy for people in the county. This is my 19th year being in office here, and I’ve been through floods and fires, but I’ve never had anything with a gut punch that I’ve had with this.”
Robert Gotcher, who captured video of the fire, called it “gut-wrenching” to see the building destroyed, according to Storyful.
This story was originally published February 5, 2021 at 11:09 AM.