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Historic Henry County Courthouse

The restoration of the Historic Henry County Courthouse is now complete thanks to a Save America’s Treasures grant, a Harvest Foundation grant, the County of Henry, cooperative subcontractors and dedicated volunteers.  A project that was estimated to cost over 1 million dollars was accomplished for less than $200,000.  The courthouse now houses the Information Center for the New College Institute and the Heritage Center & Museum. 

The courthouse is now owned by the Martinsville-Henry County Historical Society thanks to the County of Henry who gave the courthouse to the society July 1, 2010.  The society has for the first time a permanent office.  Exhibits are in place for visitors to enjoy.  A permanent time-line exhibit is planned for one area.  The Virginia Museum of Natural History donated large display cases that had been in storage.  They are in the Collector’s Gallery full of wonderful antique toys from Dr. Mervyn King’s collection and three doll houses that are part of the society’s collection.

The courtroom is ready for guests to enjoy music, plays, movies, meetings and even weddings.  The exhibit areas on the first floor are available in the evenings for rental purposes.  It is a perfect place for catered dinners, receptions, meetings or classes.  Please contact Virginia King at 276-732-1687 for more information.

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Dr. Jesse M, Shackelford, bought property in Irisburg and built a home, a wing of which was used as a hospital from 1895 to1899.  Five years later, he moved to Martinsville where he remained.  On April 29, 1921, Dr. Shackelford purchased the Teague residence on Church Street and created a hospital there.  The Shackelford Hospital was established in 1921.

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The Martinsville-Henry County Historical Society (MHCHS) is expecting final approval of the courthouse phase one-rehabilitation plan from the State and Federal Government within the next few weeks.  Once approved, the work for the HVAC can be released for a RFP (Request For Proposal), and after 20 days, bids will be accepted and a contractor selected.  If this timetable is achieved, the HVAC work could be completed within 3 months.  The HVAC will be a three zone system. Once the HVAC is completed, wall and ceiling repairs can be made and then everything painted, making the facility ready for use. 

MHCHS has requested from the Department of Historic Resources (DHR) to approve the installation of drop ceilings in the west wing and the back room of the east wing on the first floor.  This will be necessary retain the historical significance of the ceilings in order to place HVAC duct work and wiring out of sight. The ceilings will still be 13 feet in height and will not impact their historical significance.  Phase one also includes refurbishing three of the existing restrooms located on both floors.  Although none will be handicap accessible at this time, future plans do include handicap restroom to be added.  It is anticipated that Phase one could be completed in six months or less.  Current projections indicate that the majority of the initial plan can be funded, thanks to the efforts of our volunteer work force. 

MHCHS is still exploring all the possibilities for the entire first floor use.  Our major focus will to utilize the facility to tell the story of our local history, as well as have space available for community use and facility rental.  The west wing of the courthouse’s first floor will remain a completely separate space from the rest of the building and will have its own HVAC and electric meter, which will be advantageous for rental space.  This could become a valuable resource for maintaining the courthouse and the Historical Society function.  The second floor, the courtroom, will retain its current design and layout to reflect our rich community history.  Whatever is decided, it will need to help generate foot traffic into the facility in order to raise awareness of what we have to offer.

Although the courthouse is not as elegant as some of the 18th century courthouses in the state, it will be a very attractive Arts & Craft era building that will be a real asset to our community.
 

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John Armstrong Shackelford, MD, was born in Irisburg, Virginia, 1893, and attended school in Martinsville. He attended Hampden-Sydney College where he was President of his class and captain of the football team.  He then entered Johns Hopkins University and received his Doctor of Medicine degree after a two-year internship at Johns Hopkins and Union Memorial. Although he received his.....

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Dr. Shackelford was born and reared in Irisburg, Virginia, the son of William George and Pattie Martin Shackelford, a direct descendent of General Joseph Martin.

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Abo Gleibman was born in 1894 in Ozarich, Russia.  He came to the United States in 1911, through Ellis Islan, when he was 16 years old. He came off the boat with $25 which was the minimum amount the 16 year old needed to pass through the immigration station.  He spoke no English, and by the time he passed through registration his name changed from Abo Gleibman to Abe Globman......

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Whatever the reason, General Joseph Martin has been undeservedly forgotten, and as an act of historical justice I am appealed to write this sketch of him to re-emphasize the importance of his career on the Virginia-Carolina border and in the early emigration to Kentucky.   He was the sort of figure out of which border heroes are made.......

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I would live from week to week with the expectation of going to town on Saturday.  After I was 11 or 12 years old I would drive the cattle truck to Martinsville with a full cab and with neighbor children – from two to six in number – riding in the truck bed while standing with feet protruding through spaces between the wood strips. This was an open-air experience, with faces in the wind, but.....

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