William S. Hull (1848-1924) was an architect based in

Jackson, Mississippi Jackson is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Mississippi, most populous city of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The city sits on the Pearl River (Mississippi–Louisiana), Pearl River and is locate ...

who designed over twenty county courthouses in the

American South The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is census regions United States Census Bureau. It is between the Atlantic Ocean and the ...

Life and career

William Sharkey Hull was born April 3, 1848, in Jackson to John T. Hull and Anna M. (Blair) Hull. He attended the Jackson public schools, and in 1865 became a telegraph operator for the

Western Union Telegraph Company The Western Union Company is an American multinational financial services corporation headquartered in Denver, Colorado. Founded in 1851 as the New York and Mississippi Valley Printing Telegraph Company in Rochester, New York, the company ch ...

. In 1876 he changed professions, joining his elder brother Francis Blair Hull's contracting company, established two years earlier. They formed a partnership, F. B. & W. S. Hull, which quickly developed a specialty in public buildings."Hull, William S." in
Mississippi: Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions and Persons, Arranged in Cyclopedic Form
', ed. Dunbar Rowland, vol. 3 (Atlanta: Southern Historical Publishing Company, 1907): 362-363. By the 1880s, the younger Hull had emerged as an architect, having learned on the job. In 1887 he was admitted to the Western Association of Architects, which merged with the

American Institute of Architects The American Institute of Architects (AIA) is a professional organization for architects in the United States. It is headquartered in Washington, D.C. AIA offers education, government advocacy, community redevelopment, and public outreach progr ...

in 1889.W. S. Hull
/ref> He may have been the first Mississippi architect to be a member of the AIA. The brothers dissolved their partnership in 1904, and W. S. Hull opened his own office as an architect. He practiced for at least ten more years.

Personal life

Hull lived in Alabama during part of the 1880s and 1890s. He was involved in the incorporation of

Sheffield, Alabama Sheffield is a city in Colbert County, Alabama, United States, and is included in the Florence-Muscle Shoals Metropolitan Area. The population was 9,403 at the 2020 census. and was estimated to be 9,307 in 2023. Sheffield is the birthplace o ...

in 1885, and served as an alderman for five years. In 1893 he was appointed commissioner from Alabama to the

World's Columbian Exposition The World's Columbian Exposition, also known as the Chicago World's Fair, was a world's fair held in Chicago from May 5 to October 31, 1893, to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Christopher Columbus's arrival in the New World in 1492. The ...

by President

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was the 23rd president of the United States, serving from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia—a grandson of the ninth president, William Henry Harrison, and a ...

. He was an amateur inventor, and experimented with flying machines. The architect Emmett J. Hull was his nephew and worked for Hull before opening his own office. Hull died August 4, 1924, in Jackson.

Legacy

Hull's buildings were designed in the popular styles of his times. Until about 1903 most of his buildings were designed in the

Richardsonian Romanesque Richardsonian Romanesque is a architectural style, style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after the American architect Henry Hobson Richardson (1838–1886). The revivalism (architecture), revival style incorporates 11th- and 12th-century ...

style, and afterwards in the Beaux-Arts style. He was instrumental in the preservation of the

Mississippi Governor's Mansion The Mississippi Governor's Mansion is the official residence of the governor of Mississippi, who is currently Tate Reeves. It is located in downtown Jackson, Mississippi, south of the Mississippi State Capitol, at the south end of Smith Park. Co ...

, then at risk of demolition. He built at least twenty courthouses, spread over five southern states. Although many of his major buildings have been demolished, others survive and have been listed on the United States

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

, with others contribute to listed historic districts.

Architectural works

* Pike County Courthouse,

Magnolia, Mississippi Magnolia is a city in Pike County, Mississippi and the county seat. The population was 2,420 at the 2010 census. Magnolia is within the McComb, Mississippi McComb micropolitan area, Micropolitan Statistical Area. History Magnolia was founded in ...

(1883, altered) * Winn Parish Courthouse,

Winnfield, Louisiana Winnfield is a small city in, and the County seat, parish seat of, Winn Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 5,749 at the 2000 United States Census, 2000 census, and 4,840 in 2010 United States Census, 2010. Three governors of the ...

(1892–96, burned 1917) * Bienville Parish Courthouse,

Arcadia, Louisiana Arcadia is a town in and the parish seat of Bienville Parish in northern Louisiana, United States. The population was 2,919 at the 2010 census. Arcadia has the highest elevation of any incorporated municipality in Louisiana. Arcadia's name co ...

(1895–96, demolished) * Llano County Jail (former),

Llano, Texas Llano ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Llano County, Texas, United States. As of 2020, the city population was 3,325. Llano has been described as the "deer capital of Texas", with the single highest density of white-tailed deer in the U ...

(1895, NRHP 1977) * Titus County Courthouse,

Mount Pleasant, Texas Mount Pleasant is the county seat of and largest city in Titus County, in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, Mount Pleasant's population was 16,047; it is situated in Northeast Texas. History Mount Pleasant was founded May 11, ...

(1895, altered) * Austin County Jail,

Bellville, Texas Bellville is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the seat of Austin County. The city's population was 4,206 at the 2020 census. Bellville is on the eastern edge of the Texas-German belt, and Bellville is known for its German culture and descend ...

(1896, NRHP 1980) * Clarke County Courthouse,

Grove Hill, Alabama Grove Hill is a town in Clarke County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 1,818. It is the county seat of Clarke County and home of the Clarke County Museum. History The area that is now Grove Hill was originally i ...

(1899, demolished) * Greene County Courthouse,

Leakesville, Mississippi Leakesville is a town in and the county seat of Greene County, Mississippi, United States. It is located along the Chickasawhay River in Greene County, Mississippi, United States. It is served by the junction of Mississippi routes 57 and 63. ...

(1899, demolished) * Bolivar County Courthouse,

Cleveland, Mississippi Cleveland is a city and one of two county seats of Bolivar County, Mississippi, United States, the other seat being Rosedale, Mississippi, Rosedale. The Cleveland population was 11,199 as of the 2020 United States census. Cleveland has a large c ...

(1900–01, demolished) * Grant Parish Courthouse,

Colfax, Louisiana Colfax is a town in, and the parish seat of, Grant Parish, Louisiana, United States, founded in 1869. Colfax is part of the Alexandria, Louisiana metropolitan area. The largely African American population of Colfax counted 1,558 at the 2 ...

(1901–02, demolished) * Hinds County Courthouse,

(1901–02, demolished) * Bibb County Courthouse,

Centreville, Alabama Centreville is a city and the county seat of Bibb County, Alabama, United States. At the 2020 census, the population was 2,800. Geography According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Centreville has a total area of , of which are land and , or 1.52 ...

(1902–03) * Rapides Parish Courthouse,

Alexandria, Louisiana Alexandria is the ninth-largest city in the state of Louisiana and is the parish seat and largest city of Rapides Parish, Louisiana, Rapides Parish, Louisiana, United States. It lies on the south bank of the Red River of the South, Red River ...

(1902, demolished) * Sharkey County Courthouse,

Rolling Fork, Mississippi Rolling Fork is a city in and the county seat of Sharkey County, Mississippi, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the town was 1,883. History Thomas Y. Chaney settled here in 1828, and was the fir ...

(1902–03) *

Tallahatchie County Courthouse The Tallahatchie County Second District Courthouse is located in Sumner, Mississippi, in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi. The county courthouse was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 6, 2007. It is located at 108 Main Str ...

Sumner, Mississippi Sumner is a town in Tallahatchie County, Mississippi. The population was 407 at the 2000 census. Sumner is one of the two county seats of Tallahatchie County. It is located on the west side of the county and the Tallahatchie River, which runs th ...

(1902–03, burned and rebuilt 1909–10, NRHP 2007) * Ayer Hall,

Jackson State University Jackson State University (Jackson State or JSU) is a Public university, public Historically Black colleges and universities, historically black research university in Jackson, Mississippi. It is a member of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and ...

(1903, NRHP 1977) * Franklin Parish Courthouse,

Winnsboro, Louisiana Winnsboro is a town in, and the County seat, parish seat of Franklin Parish, Louisiana, United States. As of 2020, its population was 4,862. History Franklin Parish was created on March 1, 1843, from portions of Ouachita Parish, Louisiana, Oua ...

(1903, demolished) * Perry County Courthouse,

New Augusta, Mississippi New Augusta is a town in Perry County, Mississippi, Perry County, Mississippi. It is part of the Hattiesburg metropolitan area, Hattiesburg, Mississippi Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 554 at the 2020 census. It is the county sea ...

(1904–05) * Columbia County Courthouse,

Magnolia, Arkansas Magnolia is a city in Columbia County, Arkansas, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 11,577. The city is the county seat of Columbia County. Magnolia is home to the World's Largest Charcoal Grill and the World Championship ...

(1905) * Forrest County Courthouse,

Hattiesburg, Mississippi Hattiesburg is a city in the U.S. state of Mississippi, located primarily in Forrest County, Mississippi, Forrest County (where it is the county seat and most populous city) and extending west into Lamar County, Mississippi, Lamar County. The ci ...

(1905–06) * Choctaw County Courthouse,

Butler, Alabama Butler is a town in and the county seat of Choctaw County, Alabama, United States. The population was 1,894 at the 2010 census. History When Choctaw County was formed in 1847, Butler was created as the county seat. The town was located and s ...

(1906–07) * Covington County Courthouse,

Collins, Mississippi Collins is a city in Covington County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 2,586 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Covington County. History From Williamsburg Depot to Collins Collins was originally incorporated as Willi ...

(1906–07, NRHP 1991) * Jefferson Parish Courthouse (former),

Gretna, Louisiana Gretna is the second-largest city in, and parish seat of, Jefferson Parish, Louisiana, Jefferson Parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. "Gretna, Louisiana (LA) Detailed Profile" (notes), ''City Data'', 2007, webpage: C-Gretna "Census ...

(1906–07) * Jefferson Davis County Courthouse,

Prentiss, Mississippi Prentiss is a town and the county seat of Jefferson Davis County, Mississippi, United States. The population was 1,081 at the 2010 census, down from 1,158 at the 2000 census. Prentiss is located on the Longleaf Trace, Mississippi's first rec ...

(1907, NRHP 1994)Jefferson Davis County Courthouse NRHP Registration Form
(1994) * Noxubee County Jail (former),

Macon, Mississippi Macon is a city in Noxubee County, Mississippi along the Noxubee River. The population was 2,768 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Noxubee County. History In 1817, Jackson's Military Road was built at the urging of Andrew Jackson to p ...

(1907, NRHP 1979) * Tangipahoa Parish Courthouse,

Amite City, Louisiana Amite City ( or ; commonly just Amite) is a town in and the seat of Tangipahoa Parish in southeastern Louisiana, United States. The population was 4,141 at the 2010 census. It is part of the Hammond MSA. History The first European settlement ...

(1907, demolished) * Washington County Courthouse,

Chatom, Alabama Chatom is a town in Washington County, Alabama, United States. It incorporated in 1949. Chatom is the county seat of Washington County, holding the distinction since 1907. The town's population was 1,288 At the 2010 census, up from 1,193 in 20 ...

(1907, demolished) * Y. M. C. A. Building,

(1907, demolished) * Central High School (former),

(1911, altered 1925)"Industrial and Construction News" in
Tradesman
' 65, no. 17 (April 27, 1911): 51.

Gallery of architectural works

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hull, William S. 1848 births 1924 deaths 19th-century American architects 20th-century American architects Architects from Mississippi People from Jackson, Mississippi