Inventory of the County Archives of Texas: Number 62, De Witt County (Cuero) Page: 20

20 (First
entry, p. 25) Housing, Care, and Accessibility -f Records
The building faces north, and the main entrance is on that side. The
east and west entrances are joined by a wide corridor through the building,
and the south entrance leads into the county courtroom. The inside
walls are of plastered brick, and the stairs are of steel. The offices
have wooden floors; the vaults have tile; and the basement, cement. All
of the rooms and vaults have 15-foot ceilings, with the exception of the
basement, which has an 8-foot ceiling. Ventilation and lighting are
generally good throughout the building. Some of the records are crowded,
but they are comparatively free of dust and soot, and are protected from
dampness.
Agencies housed on the first floor are the offices of the county
judge, the treasurer, the county clerk, and the tax assessor-collector.
The county courtroom is also located on the first floor. On the second
floor are the offices of the school superintendent, the county attorney,
the justice of the peace of precinct i, the sheriff, and the district
clerk. The district courtroom is also located on this floor. On the
third floor are jury rooms, two storage rooms, a property room, and the
balcony to the district courtroom.
The Commissioners Court meets in the office of the county judge, a
room on the northwest corner of the first floor, Records of the court
are kept by the county clerk in his vault.
The County Clerk has an office and a large vault on the first
floor of the courthouse, in the southwest corner. The clerk has charge
of all of the records of the commissioners court, the county court, and
of those which he makes and preserves as recorder for the county. In
addition, there are approximately 100 volumes from other offices stored
in the clerk's vault. The vault is equipped with a total of 394 linear
feet of steel roller shelving along the walls, and 240 linear feat in
two counter shelves. All shelf units are filled to capacity, and there
are many volumes of records stacked on top of the shelves and on the
floor. The vault also houses a total of 410 file boxes, which contain
loose papers. Approximately 90 percent of these boxes are in use. The
records are filed in an orderly manner, and are easily accessible to the
public. There are accommodations in the vault for persons interested
in consulting the records. The clerk's office is used largely for work
space, few records being housed there. There are chairs and tables for
persons interested in the records of the department.
The District Court meets in a large courtroom on the south end of
the second floor. The district clerk's office adjoins the courtroom
on the east. The main office is used for work space only, all of the
records being housed in the vault, situated just to the north of the
office. This vault is equipped with 128 linear feet of steel roller
shelving and 234 file boxes. All shelves and file boxes are being
used at present, and there are at least 200 volumes stacked along the
top of the shelves. In addition to the clerk's own records, approximately
8 volumes and 5 file boxes from other offices are housed here,
The clerk's office i furnished with tables and chairs, and they may
be used by anyone interested in consulting the records.