Wrightsville, the county seat of Johnson County, was incorporated February 23, 1866. The city was named for James B. Wright, a member of the committee that selected the site for the town.

The Johnson County courthouse, in Wrightsville, was built in 1895 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was built of masonry in the Romanesque Revival/Colonial Revival style. The courthouse was later rebuilt by the Works Progress Administration in 1940.