Donations are being sought to help save the Jacinto Courthouse from falling in as engineers warn the building’s iconic cupola is at risk of collapsing.
Built in 1854, the Jacinto Courthouse is one of north Mississippi’s oldest historic structures. Once the centerpiece of a bustling town, the structure remains a cherished landmark for those who live in Alcorn County and surrounding areas. As time and weather have taken a toll, the original bracing beneath the cupola has rotted through, leaving the bronze roof dome unstable. According to leaders with the Jacinto Foundation, which is asking the public for donations to repair it, the cupola could fall at any time.
“It’s like pulling out that one little piece in Jenga,” Jacinto Foundation executive director Charlotte Foster compared the situation to. “It may fall today, or it may fall within two to four years. But it will fall, and when it does, it takes part of the roof with it. We don’t have the money to fix the roof, and then, we lose a treasure that’s been here since 1854.”
Foster estimates repairs will cost approximately $15,000 to replace the bracing and secure the cupola for future generations. Previous attempts to secure grant funding were unsuccessful due to required matching-fund obligations the foundation is currently unable to meet.
“We only receive $40,000 a year from our county supervisors, and it takes $70,000 just to operate (the courthouse),” Foster said. “We’re just normal, middle-class people doing what we can. But right now, we’re in a big dilemma, and we need help.”
Despite the challenge, Foster said the community’s history is worth fighting for, and it starts with ensuring the courthouse doesn’t fall in. The Jacinto Courthouse is a two-story brick building that is one of the few surviving antebellum courthouses in Mississippi. It ceased courthouse operations in 1870 when Tishomingo County was subdivided and was subsequently used as a school and later as a church before being acquired and restored by the foundation in 1969. The building has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated as an official Mississippi landmark.
“If we don’t teach our kids history and show them what’s happened in the past, it’s going to repeat itself,” Foster said. “This courthouse started Prentiss, Alcorn, and Tishomingo counties. We don’t want to lose it.”
There are multiple ways to donate to the “Save the Cupola” campaign. Cash or checks can be mailed to the foundation at P.O. Box 1174 or people can text “Jacinto” to 44321 to donate online. Ever dollar donated will go directly to repairs, according to Foster.
“We’ve got something worth saving, and we need people to give us a hand.”