Occupying a site that has been used for court purposes since 1803, the Courthouse holds hundreds of thousands of documents relating to the people and property of Halifax County, Virginia. The court records go back to 1752, when Halifax County was cut off from Lunenburg.

The Courthouse was built in 1838 and is one of the Classical Revival court buildings erected by master designer and builder, Dabney Cosby and son, Dabney Cosby, Jr. The senior Cosby worked with Thomas Jefferson on the construction of the University of Virginia and provided South-side Virginia with a variety of architecturally literate houses, churches and public build-ings. He abandoned the strict temple form for the Halifax County courthouse in favor of a T-plan and Greek Ionic order.