Historical Markers in Cameron County
Texas·123 places·Page 3 of 5
Architecture
Hicks-Gregg House
Merchant and Brownsville native Frederick Hicks and his second wife, social worker Zuleika Banton Blackshear of Dublin, Texas, built this house circa 1909. Three years later they sold the house to Harry and Nellie Moler, who lived here eight years. In 1920, banker and civic leader John Gregg and his wife Lily bought the property.
Architecture
Hicks-Lawrence House
Edgar and Goldye Hicks bought this property from the Brownsville Land and Investment Co. in 1908. Their house was one of the first built in West Brownsville, the first subdivision outside the original townsite. The Queen Anne style house features a pyramidal roof, cross gables with dormer windows, shiplap siding and a wraparound porch with Doric columns.
History
Home of Charles Stillman, 1810-1875
Brownsville home of Charles Stillman, 1810-1875; founder of Brownsville and partner in firm of M. Kenedy and Company, which opened the Rio Grande to steamboat navigation and controlled much of the commerce of Northern Mexico, 1848-1868. This house, erected about 1850, was the birthplace of James Stillman, President of the National City Bank of New York, 1891-1909.
History
Home of Chas. Stillman
Home of Chas. Stillman, ship owner, merchant, rancher, who came to Brazos Santiago in 1828 and in 1849-50 founded City of Brownsville in old Espiritu Santo Land Grant. Built about 1850 for his bride, Elizabeth Goodrich, of Connecticut. Has separate kitchen, cisterns, carriage house, patio typical of pre-Civil War architecture. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, 1964
History
Home of Col. Sam Robertson
San Benito was begun in 1904 by Sam A. Robertson (1867-1938). A wealthy civil engineer and builder, he saw farming potential in the valley. He became Sheriff and first Postmaster. He built irrigation canals and a railroad network that connected farms with produce markets. He started a Padre Island development and Del Mar, a recreational area at Boca Chica.
Architecture
Howard E. and Mary Butt House
Howard E. and Mary Butt House In 1929 entrepreneur Howard E. Butt moved the headquarters of his developing grocery business to Harlingen. The following year, Howard and his wife, Mary, bought this house from its builders, John and Ruth Townsend, a few months after its completion. During the 1930s, Howard's business (H.E.B.
Architecture
Immaculate Conception Cathedral
Mass was first celebrated in this area in 1849 by the oblates of Mary Immaculate. This church building was completed ten years later. Father Peter Yves Keralum designed the structure, which features Gothic Revival styling. The rectory was the site of the first Texas oblate seminary and served as a haven for priests fleeing revolutions in Mexico.
History
J.T. Canales
(March 7, 1877 - March 30, 1976) Civil rights advocate, legislator and attorney Jose Tomas Canales was born on a ranch in Nueces County to Andreas and Tomasa (Cavazos) Canales. As a young man, he moved to Kansas City, where he completed high school. In 1896, Canales began attending the University of Michigan, where he received his degree in law.
History
James Henry Dishman
(February 22, 1858-July 30, 1934) James Henry Dishman was forced at the age of six to assume a man's role after his father's death in the Civil War in 1864. A native of Cherokee County in East Texas, he eventually moved to Kaufman County and developed a successful ranching operation. He sold his ranch in 1892 and headed to the South Texas Gulf Coast in search of lucrative ranching opportunities.
History
Juan H. Fernandez Store
Juan H. Fernandez came to America at the age of 14 in 1875 as a ward of his uncle, Jose Fernandez-Toral, a mercantile owner originally from Pendueles, Asturias, Spain. Following in his family's footsteps, Juan Fernandez opened a store in 1883, constructing a similar structure to his uncle's store. Juan's business succeeded, catering to the ranch and farm sector.
Architecture
Kowalski-Dennett Home
French mansard house built 1893 for Louis and Amelia Kowalski by S.W. Brooks, designer of many public structures. Kowalski, a customhouse broker, was Cameron County treasurer, then district clerk for more than 40 years. Also prominent in the area were Jesse and Mary Dennett, who bought the house in 1926.
Architecture
Kraigher House
Built in 1937, the Kraigher House is a nationally known example of international style architecture, typified by asymmetrical rectilinear forms and smooth unornamented walls. George Kraigher was chief pilot and operations manager of the western division of Pan American Airways. His courageous service in both World Wars earned him numerous awards and medals, including the Silver Star from the U.S.
Architecture
L. E. Snavely House
This land was a dense chaparral of mesquite and ebony trees when it was bought by Levi Elmer (1869-1939) and Lenna Edmondson (1872-1938) Snavely in 1919. They had moved to Harlingen from Oklahoma in 1909 to grow citrus and market the fruit under the label "La Bonita." In 1928, architect Birger A. Elwing designed for them this picturesque, Norman Style house, which they called La Bonita.
History
La Feria Cemetery
This community graveyard dates to 1917, when Bernt Anderson deeded land for that purpose. The first recorded burials in the cemetery were of two children: Valda Wessels (1918-1920) and Harry P. McNeil, Jr. (1919-1921). A plot in the northwest corner of the cemetery is known as "Babyland" and contains the unmarked graves of several children.
Architecture
La Madrilena
A native of Spain, Adrian Ortiz (1860-1957) emigrated to Brownsville before he was 18 and lived with relatives who trained him as a merchant. He built this structure in 1892 to house his mercantile operation, La Madrilena (native of Madrid), an important community business for over 60 years.
History
Landrum House
This house stands on the 1781 Concepcion de Carricitos grant from the king of Spain to Eugenio and Bartolome Fernandez. Acquiring a part of the grant as fee for his legal services to the heirs, col. Stephen Powers of Brownsville gave the site to his daughter Frances and her husband, James Lambert Landrum. The landrums, who completed the house in 1902, had daughters: Martha, Pauline and Frances.
Military
Las Rucias
Here Colonel John S. Ford of the Confederate Army defeated the Union Forces June 25, 1864 Erected by the State of Texas 1936
History
Last Battle of the Civil War
At This Site the Last Battle of the Civil War, Known as Palmito Hill, was Fought by Confederate Troops Under Colonel John S. (Rip) Ford and Union Forces on May 13, 1865, 34 Days After Lee's Surrender at Appomattox. Erected by the State of Texas - 1936
Military
Launching Site of First U.S. Army Warplane
From Old Fort Brown Cavalry Drill Field, near this spot, was made the first flight of a U.S. Army plane to be fired upon in armed hostilities, April 20, 1915. Two Signal Corps officers, Lts. Byron Q. Jones and Thos. Milling, flew a Martin T.O. Curtiss 75 on the border to spot movements of Mexican revolutionist Pancho Villa. They reached 2,600 feet; were up 20 minutes.
History
Lon C. Hill Home
City's first home, built 1904, by the founder, Lon C. Hill, promoter of railroads and irrigation to the lower Rio Grande Valley. Climate-adapted Victorian house. Here valley pioneers met and planned important developments. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1980
History
Longoria Cemetery
The Longoria family were among the initial Spanish settlers to arrive in this region in the mid-1700s. Juan Rosas Longoria and Maria Salome Cano were among the men and women who founded permanent communities such as the Villa de Reynosa, establishing the Longoria family in the area.
Architecture
M. E. and Estela Garcia House
BUILT IN 1960-61 IN THE SOUTHERN COLONIAL ARCHITECTURAL STYLE, THIS HOUSE WAS BUILT FOR THE ESTELA CUETO (1914-1984) AND MARTIN ENRIQUE (M.E.) (1911-1976) GARCÍA FAMILY, MERCHANTS AND RANCHERS IN SOUTH TEXAS. EDWARD J. ROMIENIEC & ASSOCIATES DESIGNED THE HOUSE WITH A 'FICTION OF AGE,' INCORPORATING MATERIAL SALVAGED FROM THE c. 1854 HOME OF M.E.
Architecture
Manautou House
Enrique Manautou (1885-1962) had this residence built for his family in 1925 by Brownsville architect Edward Guy Holliday (1891-1961). A native of Mexico, Manautou became one of the city's most prominent retail merchants and civic leaders. Manautou's family continued to reside in the house after his death.
History
Matanza of 1915
In the late 19th and early 20th century, racial tensions near the United States - Mexico border and the lower Rio Grande Valley erupted into violence. The change from ranching to commercial agriculture and a shift in racial hierarchies led to increased discrimination against Mexican Americans and Mexicans in the region.
Architecture
McNair House
Brownsville architect A.H. Woolridge designed this home in 1937 for Malcolm Prothro (Jack) and Vivian Faust McNair. Jack McNair moved to Brownsville in 1921 to join his brother, Phillip, in a clothing manufacturing business. Jack eventually became sole owner of the company, and McNair Clothing Manufacturing Company grew to become the largest private employer south of San Antonio.
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