PAGE COUNTY COURTHOUSE LURAY, VA

Page County has a historic Jeffersonian working courthouse in the the picturesque Shenandoah Valley northwestern part of Virginia. The 1830 courthouse is part of the Luray Downtown Historical District. The Greek Revival style structure consists of a two-story, four-bay courthouse with three-bay, one story wings. The four bays of the pedimented Gable facade open onto a ground floor arcade with rounded arches in the Jeffersonian Roman Revival style. The roof is topped by a cupola with coupled pilasters and four pedimented gables. The courthouse was built by Malcolm Crawford and William Philips, both of whom worked under Thomas Jefferson at the University of Virginia. The exterior is painted white with rich green doors, shutters and Court signs.

The courtroom interior has a jury box with three rows of stand-alone wood swivel chairs. Inmates are separated to the side with prisoner benches surrounded by three foot railings on three sides.  A sign on the railing of the prisoner bench closest to the gallery reads in bright red “No Unauthorized Communications with Inmates” and below has a warning that “Anyone that Communicates with an inmate and is not authorized to communicate with said inmate will be charged and prosecuted.” The warning appears to be meant for persons who “talk to an inmate, pass a note or make a hand sign that causes court security to react... Such is “not a protected behavior.”

Courthouse No. 19 Page County Courthouse,
Location: 116 South Court Street, Luray, Virginia 22835
Constructed: 1832-1833
Architect and Contractor: Malcolm Crawford and William Philips   
Current Use: Courthouse  
National Register of Historic Places: 1973

Today Page County has a population of approximately 24,000.  Luray, the county seat, with 6500 people, is best known for the Luray Caverns and Fall foliage.

Thanks to Page County Clerk of the Circuit Court Grayson Markowitz for the tour and history of this courthouse. He is deeply dedicated to the preservation of this beautiful and immaculate historic Virginia courthouse.