A historic Virginia courthouse is coming down, although it’s not historic for the usual reasons that Virginia courthouses are.
The Botetourt County Courthouse in Fincastle looked old, but wasn’t. It was built in 1975, but was designed to look like its circa-1848 predecessor, which burned in 1970. It was that 1975 courthouse that earned a historical marker. After that 1970 fire, the county’s records, dating back to Colonial times, were feared lost. Instead, they survived “almost unharmed” because they were in a “secure vault,” according to the Virginia Department of Historic Resources. Still, that was a close call. Prompted by the Botetourt courthouse fire, the Virginia General Assembly passed a law requiring that “deeds, wills and other vital records” be copied and microfilmed, with the microfilm sent to the Library of Virginia in Richmond for safekeeping.
Now those records are kept digitally, and that replacement courthouse is itself being replaced.
The 1975-era courthouse was deemed outdated for many reasons. It wasn’t compatible with the Americans with Disabilities Act, and its design did not allow it to be retrofitted to suit modern security concerns. It was also infested with mold and spouted water leaks from both its roof and its walls.
Botetourt County is now engaged in a $35.7 million project to tear down the 1975 courthouse and build a new one in its place that will look much like the two that went before it. The tear-down started last week. The new courthouse is expected to be completed by July 2027.
One constant through Botetourt’s courthouses is Thomas Jefferson. Botetourt’s first courthouse, built in the 1770s, was a log structure. In 1820, Jefferson — by then a former president — designed a new courthouse for Botetourt and mailed the plans to the county. That courthouse lasted until the 1848 building, which retained much of Jefferson’s design, as did the 1975 version — and now, the new facility.
Another constant: The Botetourt County Courthouse has long been a magnet for genealogists and historians. That’s because Botetourt County once stretched all the way to the Mississippi River, so many of the old records at the courthouse apply to places that are now in other states.
Those interested in the project can follow along on a webcam.
