The waymark coordinates for for the La Salle County courthouse at 101 Courthouse Square in downtown Cotulla, a contributing building to the US National Register Cotulla Downtown Historic District.
The Cotulla Downtown Historic District was added to the US National Register of Historic Places in 2013.
From the Nomination form: (
visit link)
"Description
The Cotulla Downtown Historic District includes 33 total resources in central Cotulla, Texas. Within the district
are railroad tracks, brick 1-part and 2-part commercial buildings facing the railroad tracks on Front Street, the
Art Deco La Salle County Courthouse, the town plaza, and several additional historic commercial buildings with
high level of integrity. The district is approximately 17 acres in area and lies roughly between Kerr and Market
Streets, and Tilden and Carrizo Streets. Its boundary is slightly irregular in order to include the highest
concentration of historic resources. Of the 33 total resources, 21 are considered contributing. Of the eleven
noncontributing resources, seven date to the historic period of 1881 to 1952 but have poor integrity; the
remaining three postdate the period of significance.
Cotulla is the county seat of La Salle County in southern Texas. The city is located at the intersection of
Interstate 35 and State Highway 97 in the northwestern portion of the county. The Nueces River flows in a
southeasterly direction along the city’s southern border. Cotulla is a small city with a total land area of 2.0
square miles. Land around the city is flat and primarily dedicated to ranching; native vegetation includes
mesquite, scrub brush, cacti, grasses, and small live oak and post oak trees.
Cotulla was founded in 1881 as a railroad town, when the International-Great Northern Railroad came through
La Salle County. Because of this, the location of the railroad tracks dictated the city’s organization and street
layout. The railroad enters southern Cotulla at a northeasterly angle, bends north-northwest as it passes through
town, and then resumes its northeasterly course. West of the railroad, Cotulla’s streets mirror the railroad’s
north-northwest angle, so that the street grid is slightly skewed off true north. The tracks and their adjacent
commercial buildings constitute the eastern edge of the street grid, and later development spread westward and
today terminates at Interstate 35. The courthouse sits at Center Street, three blocks west of the railroad tracks.
North of Center Street, street names have a “North” directional designation, and south of Center Street, streets
are designated “South.” Front Street runs parallel to and immediately west of the tracks. East of the tracks, the
street grid differs—the southwest-northeast angled streets here were platted as the town of La Salle, an 1881
town that was eventually absorbed into Cotulla.
Cotulla Downtown Historic District
The Cotulla Downtown Historic District is located in the commercial and civic center of Cotulla, and stretches
from the railroad tracks on the east to the county courthouse on the west. Its boundaries encompass portions of
several blocks containing commercial, industrial, civic, recreational, religious, and residential resources.
The district consists largely of buildings representing common commercial forms, and few notable landmarks
such as an Art Deco courthouse, a Mission Style auto showroom, and a simplified Gothic Revival Style church.
The majority of buildings in the district date to the first half of the 20th century, and are associated with
development spurred by the arrival of the railroad in 1881. Based on terminology devised by architectural
historian Richard Longstreth in The Buildings of Main Street (1987), the majority of buildings represent 2-part
Commercial Block and 1-part Commercial Block façade compositions. As commercial buildings often do not
always exhibit the characteristics of high styles, Longstreth’s typology is based on facade organization, and
architectural detailing may be either prominent or totally lacking.
The district’s contributing resources were built between the 1880s and the early 1950s, a time period that
reflects Cotulla’s growth. The district’s flat streets retain their historic configurations. Streets are asphalt or a
mix of concrete and asphalt, and have traditional squared concrete curbs. Most of the district’s streets are
narrow, with enough room for two cars to pass but no painted lanes. Main Street, which also functions as the
Interstate 35 Business Loop, is an improved road with four lanes. Blocks have curved corners. Sidewalks are
not uniform throughout the district. Several blocks lack sidewalks, but short concrete sidewalks are found in
front of most commercial buildings and at the courthouse. The first United Methodist Church has a sidewalk
near its buildings, and a narrow historic sidewalk encircles the town plaza block. Along Front Street, the
historic commercial buildings share an elevated sidewalk accessed by two or three concrete steps. District
vegetation is primarily limited to sparse deciduous trees found on the courthouse lawn, in Cotulla City Park,
near the railroad tracks, and in a few places near Main Street businesses.
Properties designated as “contributing” to the historic district are at least 50 years old and retain sufficient
historic-period architectural fabric to be recognizable to the period of significance. Most of the resources within
the boundaries of the historic district meet the recommended age criteria. Of these, a majority retain their
original architectural features such that they convey a strong sense of the historic period. Such features include
original building form, roof pitch and form, exterior materials, design elements, and other architectural details.
Most buildings in the Downtown Cotulla Historic District, whether contributing or noncontributing, have
experienced changes to their fenestration. Those that retain their historic-period openings are generally
considered “contributing” if they have few other alterations. Noncontributing resources are either nonhistoric,
do not date to the period of significance ending in 1952, or have been altered so severely that they no longer
convey an adequate sense of history. Examples of noncontributing properties include Resource 3 (Ben’s
Western Wear) which has had its upper story windows enclosed and its exterior brick stuccoed. Another
example is Resource 9, now used as a church, which has enlarged its window openings to cover much of the
primary façade. "