Ally Beitel House

Myrta Street entrance, 1929. Kerr County Historical Commission collection.

Washington Street entrance, 2013.

This stucco house at 901 Myrta Street, at the corner of Washington, was built for Ally Beitel in 1925.  Ally Beitel operated the Beitel "Old House" Lumber Yard on Clay Street.  You can read more about the Beitel Lumber Yard and about Ally Beitel here.
The front of this house faces Washington Street and had an address of 847 Washington, but for many years the Myrta Street entrance has been preferred.

Because of his business, Beitel was able to carefully selected the best quality materials to build his dream home. The house is so well designed and built and the quality of materials is so high that very little has been altered.  It still has original lighting and plumbing fixtures. Designed and built by local builders Otto Schwethelm and Bruno Schott at a cost of $18,500, it was valued at $20,000 in the 1930 census.  Interestingly, ten years later, in the 1940 census, it was valued at $8,500.  That is a rather steep decline in valuation even for the Great Depression era.  I'm not sure what to attribute this to.

Beitel died of an extended illness in 1933 at the age of 44. Two months later his widow transferred the property to A. C. Schreiner (who held the mortgage).  It appears she continued to live in the house while she was building a smaller house next door at 849 Washington Street.

In April 1935 A.C. Schreiner sold the house to Edward H. and Maydee Patton. Edward Patton was general manager of the Kerrville Amusement Company which built the Arcadia Theatre and operated it for many years. In 1947 he bought the Blue Bonnet Drug Store and owned it until his retirement. She died in 1955, he in 1973. They are buried in Waco.
The following item appeared in the Sept. 9, 1943, Kerrville Mountain Sun.
"Mr. and Mrs. E. H. Patton have moved to their home on Myrta Street. Mr. and Mrs. David Bruton and children, who spent the past year in the Patton home, have returned to Houston."
Just one month later, on October 6, 1943, the Pattons sold the property to Bennett and Archie Nance who lived there until about 1991.  The Nances owned the house the longest. They were ranchers in Wichita Falls before coming to Kerr County and later on the Divide.

Dr. Tom and Susan Nau were the next owners.  In 1993 Gary and Kathy Miears bought the house and reside there today.