Termed by architectural historian Talbot Hamlin the “Acropolis of Palmyra,” the cluster of court structures that comprise the Fluvanna County Courthouse Historic District are dominated by the temple-form, Greek Doric courthouse, which stands grandly overlooking the surrounding village of Palmyra. Gen. John Hartwell Cocke of nearby Bremo, one of the five commissioners who drafted plans for both the courthouse and jail, took primary responsibility for their final appearance. The 1829 stone jail, built by John G. Hughes, is similar to the distinctive brick and stone farm buildings at Bremo. The courthouse, completed in 1831, was supervised by Walker Timberlake, a Methodist preacher/contractor. It is one of the state’s few antebellum courthouses to remain without additions and retain its original interior arrangement and many original fittings. Inscribed on the stone lintel above the Fluvanna County Courthouse entrance is “THE MAXIM HELD SACRED BY EVERY FREE PEOPLE / OBEY THE LAWS.