Photos taken July 1998
by Butch Bridges
Ardmore, Oklahoma

Here’s are some of photos of the Cooke County Courthouse E. Howard tower clock of our neighbor 45 miles to the south in Gainesville, Texas. Four courthouses have been constructed on this site.  The first which was a small log structure built in 1850.  In 1853, that structure was replaced by a one-story frame building that was destroyed by fire.  The third courthouse, a two-story limestone structure, was completed in 1880, but it was destroyed by fire in 1909.

Close-up view of the copper clad tower dome, spire, and clock face. Clocks were added to the dome in 1920.

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View from farther away

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View of the E. Howard clock

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Close-up view of the E. Howard clock

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View of the gear box that drives the four clock faces

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View of the two pulleys attached to the top of the dome in which the chains run for the weights before the clock was converted to electric

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2005 view of courthouse during remodeling phase.

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2009 View of the courthouse

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