During the Civil War, this building was utilized for many purposes while the town changed hands several times. The clerk, Fayette Mauzy, became incensed when Union soldiers tore the pages out of the record books to start their camp fires.
In the dark of the night, he crept into the courthouse, retrieved the priceless books, loaded them on his wagon, and took them out in the county to the home of a tanner, Henry Hitt, where they remained buried under the tanbark until the end of the war.
The dilapidated building was auctioned off in 1870, and the current courthouse was begun. Court was first held in the new building in July of 1873. The beautifully restored circuit courtroom with a hand-painted classical border is a source of pride for the community.
On the left and the right sides of the Culpeper County Courthouse, you will find two memorials commemorating those who fought and perished in Vietnam and the Civil War.
