The courthouse has served as a seat of justice and government, a landmark, a social event location, and a community center for Alamance County since it was first opened in 1924. From the day to day activities of the court system to the weekly after-church gatherings of residents in the 30’s and 40’s to historical celebrations of major events to the occasional wedding or fashion show, the courthouse has seen its share of use throughout the years.
In order to accommodate its use as a community center of so much activity, several upgrades and repairs have been made over the years. In the 1980’s, an elevator was installed to assist disabled residents in their use of the building, and in the 1990’s, major repairs were done to the aging roof of the building to prevent further damage from external leaks. The massive structural damage caused by those leaks, however, was not repaired until the 2010-2011 renovations.
After 40 years of use, much like its predecessor, space began to become an issue for the courthouse. However, instead of changing the structure of the Historic Courthouse, this time additional buildings were constructed to ease the crowding issues and to provide county government with its own buildings.
In 1966, the Courthouse Annex was built at the site of the original jail, one block west of the courthouse at 126 West Elm Street. 8 years later, construction began on a neighbor to the Courthouse Annex: the County Office Building, located at 124 West Elm Street. In 2009 and 2010, the Courthouse Annex underwent renovations and was renamed the Alamance Civil Courts Building.
In 1993, further issues with the nearly 70-year-old Historic Courthouse, including noise and dangerous conditions, caused the county to construct a new courthouse a bit further west down Elm Street. The Criminal Courts Building, commonly referred to as the “New Courthouse”, began construction in 1992 and opened in 1993.