Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 10/21/1980
NRHP Listing Date 03/02/1981
NRHP Reference Number 81000649
The Wise County Courthouse reflects the wealth reaped by the county from the expansion of the railroads and the increased mining of coal in the region at the turn of the 20th century. A rare use in Virginia of the Renaissance Revival style for a county courthouse, the building was completed in 1896 after plans by the prolific Washington, D.C., architect Frank P. Milburn, who worked throughout the South. Milburn’s Wise County courthouse is the third courthouse to serve the county. With its paired towers, lively massing, and well-articulated masonry detailing, the Wise County Courthouse building has a palatial air and is perhaps the most successful of the several courthouses Milburn designed for Southwest Virginia counties.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated: May 4, 2023
