If anyone ever wanted to know what the similarities or differences were in the 77 county courthouses across the State of Oklahoma, those questions can now be answered because of a display currently open to the public in the lobby of the Woods County Courthouse in Alva.
John Barton, retired dean and speech professor at Northwestern Oklahoma State University, and his wife Margaret spent 14 days discovering Oklahoma during two- and three-day trips to specific counties this past year, setting out to see and photograph every county courthouse as a way to celebrate the state’s Centennial year.
Angelia Case, instructional media center technician and sponsor of the Northwestern Art Society (NAS), contacted the Barton’s in November to see about creating a display of their photos so everyone could see the different types of architecture represented in the buildings. NAS sponsored the initial display in the J.W. Martin Library, and interest was shown in taking the photos to other locations.
The courthouse photos are displayed alphabetically by county on each panel except for Garfield, Woods and Woodward counties. The courthouse structures in those three counties are on a separate panel because Northwestern has campuses in all three of those counties. Those viewing the photos will see that a few of the buildings look fairly or moderately old with some looking new. The buildings also range from magnificent historical structures to sleek modern designs.
