Colonial Williamsburg Courthouse

Williamsburg, United States

Open to visitors

The interior is normally open, possibly ticketed.

Strollie cannot guarantee access — always check before you travel.

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The Colonial Williamsburg Courthouse, constructed between 1770 and 1771, is a Georgian-style building that faces Market Square with Duke of Gloucester Street behind it. Built of red brick with white wooden trim-boards, the courthouse features long arched windows with white shutters and a distinctive projected portico over one entrance—an unusual detail in Georgian architecture. The hipped roof, supported by an entablature with dentil moldings, is pierced by chimneys and crowned with a central octagonal drum capped by a dome and spire. Originally, the building housed two separate court systems: the James City County Court for county cases and the Hustings Court for city matters. The courthouse gained historical prominence on July 25, 1776, when Benjamin Waller read the Declaration of Independence aloud from its steps following its arrival from Philadelphia. Later, during the Civil War, it served as a hospital for the Confederate Army after the Battle of Williamsburg. Colonial Williamsburg acquired the property in 1928, and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places as a contributing property to the Williamsburg Historic District in 1966.