This is information I obtained from Winston County Journal’s 1968 75th anniversary edition. The 1887 board of supervisors advertised intentions to build this courthouse at a cost of ten to twelve thousand dollars. The contract was awarded to S.H. Berg on December 1887. The contract was signed by W. F. Tate, president of the board, J. F. Hopkins, D. H. Roberts, Alvin Dempsey and I. T. Suttle. It is said to have been the first brick building in the county and folks were afraid the county would go broke building it.

When the courthouse was raised 1963 they found a few things that were placed in the cornerstone. A copy of the Winston Signal dated July 28, 1888. Two bottles of patent medicines, Literature on medicines manufactured by Dr. George Y. Woodward chairman of the building committee, come Confederate money and a number of other items. The cornerstone was solid and the items were placed on top of the stone and sealed in the construction of the building. The medicines were Dr. Woodward’s Liver Renovator and Dr. Woodward’s Liniment. Other people on the building committee were H. W. Hathorn and Henry Gully. Members of the board of supervisors were B. Scarbrough, Wm. Tate, A. Dempsey, D. H. Roberts, W. W. Burroughs. Also mentioned were J. F. Hopkins, past supervisor and S. H. Berg, contractor. W. F. McDonald was the brick mason.

Ross and Buken, Architects of Birmingham submitted seven sheets of hand-written specification for the courthouse concerning excavations, Foundations, Brickwork, best quality ordered carpenter work, ceilings, floor and painting.

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Rick Algood
February 24, 2017