Travis County Courthouse, County courthouse in Austin, Texas.

The Heman Marion Sweatt Travis County Courthouse is a six-story steel-and-concrete building clad in cream-colored limestone, designed by local architect Charles Henry Page and built by contractor H.E. Wattinger. Its PWA Moderne design shows symmetrical rectangular forms, recessed vertical window bays and smooth stonework with neoclassical flourishes and geometric detailing. It stands on the north side of Wooldridge Park in downtown Austin and holds civil and criminal trial courts.

Travis County's first purpose-built courthouse, a two-story stone building, went up near Republic Square in 1855; a larger 1876 successor stood south of the Texas State Capitol until its demolition in 1964. The county chose a site on the north side of Wooldridge Park for the present building, whose cornerstone was laid in 1930. It opened on June 27, 1931, and was expanded in 1958 and 1962. In 2005 it was renamed for Heman Marion Sweatt, whose 1946 suit was argued here by Thurgood Marshall.

The courthouse is named for Heman Marion Sweatt, an African-American law student whose 1946 suit against the University of Texas was heard here; Thurgood Marshall argued the case in 1947. In 1950 the Supreme Court ruled in Sweatt v. Painter that he should be admitted, and the county renamed the building after him on October 21, 2005.

The courthouse stands on the north side of Wooldridge Park in downtown Austin, a short walk from the Texas State Capitol. It remains an active civil and criminal trial court, so expect security screening at the entrance. The 1931 building was expanded in 1958 and 1962, and a preservation master plan adopted in January 2016 covered repairs to the structure.

The courthouse was renamed in 2005 for Heman Marion Sweatt, whose 1946 suit against the University of Texas was argued in this building by Thurgood Marshall. The jail on the top floor drew a 1972 inmates' lawsuit and closed in April 1990.