Coffee County Historical Society will reopen the Historic Court House on the square on May 9 at 1 p.m. after being closed for remodeling.

The event will include a free open house and will feature a special invitation to county employees who once worked in the building.

Construction at the courthouse was facilitated by grants totaling over $150,000 from the Tennessee Historical Commission to renovate the first floor to an 1871 look and feel. Parts of the courthouse date back earlier than that, but the building was extensively remodeled in the 1870s after a suspicious fire damaged much of the building.

That work included removing the old vinyl flooring and wall paneling and replacing that with period-appropriate wood flooring to match the original walnut and pine floors. The walls were not able to support plastering so the county and CCHS coordinated to work out a period-authentic drywall and paint scheme.

CCHS Volunteer Museum Curator and Board Member Bonnie Gamble said that the CCHS secured a grant for its on-site museum to replace the ceiling.

“This is a first step in making sure that this courthouse is viable for generations to come, and a place to learn about the heritage of our county,” Gamble said.

She offered the hope that the upstairs, where the courtroom is located, could be eventually renovated.

Volunteer Assistant Curator and Marketing Coordinator Sandra McMullin Bennett said that she is grateful for the amount of work that has been done.

“I am so grateful to the County Mayor and the County Commission for their willingness to take care of this building and to see it as an important historical resource,” said Bennett.

“We are doing everything that we can to bring tourists and visitors into this courthouse to see this jewel that we have here,” she added.

The CCHS museum is located on the first floor of the courthouse and open Tuesday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Entry is free. Exhibits include Coffee County-related artifacts, especially ones from the WWII era.

“We will be working on a school exhibit as soon as this is done,” Gamble said. “We have a lot of school items from about 1910.”

There will be a permanent exhibit on the courthouse and the CCHS will be taking oral history recordings of Vietnam War veterans and citizens who recall the time to document local historical contributions to that conflict.

Coffee County Historical Society is an all-volunteer organization. Those interested in preserving local history are welcome to contact the group for volunteer opportunities.