The Heart of Bexar County

q
Above: June 17, 2018, King Felipe VI
and Queen Letizia visited Bexar
County Courthouse for the
inauguration of the Designing
America exhibit.
space and restrooms. A spiral staircase from
judge’s office to a loft was restored.
We had a special treat when we revealed four
paintings by former County Commissioner and
folk artist William G.M. Samuel. They were
painted around 1850 and were loaned to the
Witte Museum about 70 years ago. Betty and I
met with Marise McDermott, president of the
Witte Museum, to look at the paintings and she
agreed to return them.
They were colorful paintings of San Fernando
Cathedral, La Quinta (the first post office), Casa
Reales (the original site of city and county
government) and other buildings and residences
around Main Plaza. Numerous citizens are
depicted enjoying life around the plaza.
Since our opening many more citizens now
attend our Commissioner Court meetings.
Numerous civic groups have used the courtroom for
government meetings, news conferences, receptions,
breakfasts, luncheons, graduations and symposiums.
In 2016, the Commissioners Court accepted an
award from the San Antonio Conservation Society
for restoration of the Double-height courtroom.
On June 17, 2018 we held a reception in the
restored courtroom for Spanish King Felipe V1 and
Queen Letizia on their official visit to San Antonio to
celebrate our city and county’s 300th anniversary.
We also gave them a tour of a major exhibit that
we held on the first floor of the courthouse. It
included documents, maps and pictures of Spain’s
explorations and settlements in North America.
5 0 F T H E H E A R T O F B E X A R C O U N T Y