Fifth Prince William County Courthouse

The city of Manassas originated in 1852 at the junction of the Manassas Gap and the Orange & Alexandria railroads. During the Civil War the junction's strategic significance led to two important battles nearby. After the war, as the community grew, citizens sought to move the county seat there from Brentsville. In 1872, a year before Manassas was incorporated as a town, and again in 1888, referenda failed. A third referendum in 1892 succeeded. This Romanesque Revival courthouse, designed by James C. Teague and Philip T. Marye, of Norfolk and Newport News, was completed in 1893 and served the county until 1984 when a new courthouse was built nearby.