An Appointment with History!

By: City of Newport News

This Saturday, June 25, the Warwick County Historical Society offers an Open House of the historic 1810 Warwick County Courthouse, located at 14414 Old Courthouse Way in Newport News. Visitors are welcome between the hours of 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. for tours. This event is free and open to the public.  Erected in 1810, the diminutive three-room courthouse answered a need by Warwick citizens who requested that the state legislature relocate the county seat to a more convenient location on the “Great Warwick Road.”  Laid in Flemish bond with glazed headers, over the doorway is a dated brick with the names of the masons.  During the 1862 Peninsula Campaign, southern and federal forces variously encamped on the courthouse grounds and raided the clerk’s office, making off with many of the county’s early records.  The building remained in use as a courthouse until 1884 when a larger one was constructed adjacent to it. In the 1960s, the structure was repurposed as the first public library in Denbigh.  In the 1980s, the building was restored with grant funds from the Virginia Department of Conservation & Historic Resources matched by funds from the City of Newport News. This preservation effort saved what is the oldest existent municipal structure in Newport News.
For additional information, contact (757) 525-7372.