Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Laurie and I like riding our Gold Wing motorcycle. But it is easy to get into a rut and just ride the same roads. So to force ourselves to ride to places we would not normally visit we made a goal to visit and photograph all 100 North Carolina courthouses within 1 year.
As usual, we got a little behind. We started in July 2015 and finished 99 out of 100 by June 2018. The last courthouse was in our home county of Wake and it took us until Feb 2021 to get that final one. But we made it! This blog is about one of those visits.
Many NC courthouses were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. The nomination form has some interesting facts about the various courthouse styles over the years.
Courthouse Information
Wikipedia says the following about the courthouse:
Hoke County Courthouse is a historic courthouse building located at Raeford, Hoke County, North Carolina. It was designed by the noted architectural firm of Milburn and Heister and built in 1912. It is a three-story Classical Revival style tan brick building fronted by a tetrastyle pedimented Ionic order portico.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
County Information
The North Carolina History Project lists the following information for this county:
Formerly comprising parts of Cumberland and Robeson counties and named after a famous North Carolinian and former Confederate general, Hoke County was established in 1911. Two previous attempts had failed.
People living in what would become Hoke County had complained about traveling long distances to either Cumberland County or Robeson County courthouses. The travel for some lasted two days in one direction and four days overall. Residents also complained that criminals roamed the pine forests without fear of law enforcement. Others who were building banks and stores in the young incorporated town of Raeford, also lobbied for a new county to be drawn from parts of Cumberland and Robeson counties.
The name was originally going to be Glenn County, and the idea was defeated in the legislature in 1907 and 1909.
Senator William McLaughlin (Cumberland County), a longtime proponent of the new county, changed the proposed name to Hoke County, and the third time was a charm, as they say. The county is named after a Confederate Major General, Robert F. Hoke. He had served in the Confederate Army and later lived in Raleigh and worked as a railroad president. The county was established in 1911.
The county seat is Raeford, the largest town. Approximately one-third of the county, the northern part, is an area of Fort Bragg.
Hoke County is known primarily for its agricultural production. North Carolina is a leader in national turkey production, and Hoke County commemorates that fact with the annual North Carolina Turkey Festival.
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Bradley Taylor
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Hoke County Courthouse in Raeford, North Carolina
Laurie
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