Location Information
(for the Jones County Courthouse)
Name:Jones County Courthouse
Address:415 5th Avenue, North
City/County:Laurel, Jones County
Architectural Information
Construction Date:1907-08
Architectural Styles(s):Beaux Arts, Art Deco, Modern
No. of Stories:2
Registration Information
NR District Name:Laurel Central (1987)
    NR Status:Contributing
    Element No.:52
NR District Name:Laurel Central (Additional Documentation/Boundary Increase/D (2021)
    NR Status:Contributing
    Element No.:107
Mississippi Landmark Information
Designated:02-25-1987
Recorded:03-26-1987
Book/Vol. No.:V. 946, p. 344
Local Designation Information
Local District Name:Laurel Central Historic District
click here for additional information on this district.
Context/Comments
Designed by architect P.J. Krouse of Meridian, the Jones County Courthouse in Laurel was built in 1908. It was enlarged in 1936 under the direction of architects N.W. Overstreet and A.H. Town of Jackson. Before its enlargement, it had the same design as the Jones County Courthouse in Ellisville. Although Mississippi has ten counties with dual county seats, Jones County is the only county with “identical twin” courthouses.

The courthouse is included as a contributing element (element #52) in the Laurel Central Historic District, which was placed on the National Register on 4 September 1987. It was designated a Mississippi Landmark on 25 February 1987.

The building is included in "Mississippi Courthouses, Then and Now" (1987), "The Majesty of Eastern Mississippi and the Coast" (2004) (p. 67), and "Buildings of Mississippi" (2020) (pp. 307, PW11).
Brief Description
This impressive 2-story brick courthouse features a low-pitched hipped roof with a brick parapet and elaborate modillioned and dentiled stone cornice. A terra-cotta belt course is along the façade (west) above the 2nd floor. The symmetrical façade is 7 bays (W, W, W, D, W, W, W) where the central three bays are recessed within an undercut, full-height portico that projects slightly from the façade. The entry door is two-leaf, glazed and paneled and topped by a transom and stone lintel. Windows are 1-over-1, DH wood sash with stone lintels featuring decorative bracket-like keystones. The same fenestration is on the 2nd floor, however, the entry door and windows are topped by triangular pedimented hoods with brackets. Below the 2nd floor windows are terra cotta bas relief panels. The portico features a stone, dentiled cornice with elaborate molding in the pediment. It has a wide frieze supported by four prominent round columns with Scamozzi capitals. The north elevation shares similar design features; however, it lacks a projecting entry portico. Its central section is undercut with Scamozzi columns similar to the façade. At the rear of the courthouse is 1-story addition employing Art Deco influences. It is a brick addition with partial stuccoed exterior. It is characterized by its main entrance fronting W. 5th Street. The entry door is recessed and flanked by large, cast concrete eagles. Above the entrance is a unique course of alternating white and yellow elements. Above this course are 5, small square panels. A round window is east of this entrance. Finally, a 2-story addition is along the south elevation and reflects elements of the International Style. It is characterized by rows of 1-over-1, DH windows with concrete spandrels above and below.