Nugent Building

Construction began on this contemporary commercial building at 832 Main Street, Kerrville, in November, 1964. It features a double arch over the entry and red ceramic tile walls. When the building was completed in early 1965, it became the temporary home of the Post Office. In July, 1966 the Post Office moved back to newly renovated quarters in the Federal building at the corner of Earl Garrett and Main Streets.
The January 13, 1965, Kerrville Mountain Sun printed a photograph of a crane erecting a column for the Nugent Building.  The cutline reads:
This guy Guido must have a good thing.  His tall cranes have been in Kerrville five times during the past six months, assisting with erecting buildings.  This picture shows one of the columns for the Nugent building at the corner of Main and Washington Streets.  The same cranes have been used for erecting the lights at Antler Stadium, on the Peterson Hospital, and even the new water tower at Mooney Aircraft.
 
Low bidder I'm sure.  Now if I just knew Guido's last name I might be able to learn the name of the contracting company.

The first occupant after the Post Office moved out was Drue A. Dunn who announced the opening of his office "for the practice of Public Accountancy at 832 Main" in the February 1, 1967, Kerrville Mountain Sun.  Dempsey Tegeler Co. Member New York Stock Exchange also moved in at about the same time.
This building has been home to many small businesses, mostly professional offices, ever since.

Johnson Building

This hollow tile building at 806-810 Main Street was erected in early 1941 for J. F. Johnson at a cost of $1,200.
The newspaper reporting of business addresses is a little confusing, but it appears that the first business at 806 Main Street was the Panama Cafe which opened in March 1941.  In August 1942 the owners advertised "For Sale: Nice new cafe doing plenty of business. Just right for man and wife to handle, seating capacity about 40, Panama Cafe".  It appears they were not able to sell the business and finally just closed it down.  In December 1943, the World War II Ration Board offices moved to 806 Main Street "in the building formerly occupied by the Panama Cafe".
White Auto Store (which sold appliances as well as auto parts) was in this space by May 1949. About a year later, in late April 1950, there was a fire that started near the back of the store.  The store was closed for about a month for repairs, then reopened.  At the end of November, the White Auto Store suffered an even more devasting fire. The heat was so intense, the display windows at the front of the store cracked and the cars on a toy train in the window melted. The owner was charged with arson, but found not guilty in a jury trial.   In September 1952, White Auto Store reopened two doors down (at 810 Main) under new ownership where it operated until 1959.
After the fire, the building was once more renovated, and Frank's Cafe opened.  The March 29, 1951, Kerrville Mountain Sun reported "New Name, New Location For Frank's Cafe.  Free coffee will be served Monday at the formal opening of Frank's formerly the Chicken Pie Shop at their new location at 806 Main Street.  The popular restaurant will move to the larger quarters only two doors from the present location, on Friday and Saturday.  Frank's will be operated by the owners, Mr and Mrs. Frank Zumpf."

The first business at 808 Main was Kerr County Abstract Company.  They were here a couple of years when White Auto Stores moved in. It's not clear to me if White Auto Stores occupied two spaces for a while, or if it simply moved next door.

The first business at 810 Main appears to have been the World War II Price Control Board, later joined by the Area Rent Control office.  About the same time the Price Control Board and Rent Control office moved out, in the summer of 1946, James H. Blake announced me had moved the B & L Furniture Store to 810 Main to enlarge his showrooms. By 1952 the White Auto Store was in this space, followed by the Lucretia Michon Rothman dance studio.

These are only the first of a number of small businesses have come and gone from these spaces since.

812-814 Main Street

According to the November 20, 1930 Kerrville Mountain Sun, a frame building that formerly stood at 812 Main Street was the original location of Florence Butt's grocery store. By 1930 there was a dry cleaner in the old building.

In 1938, Mrs. Samuel Friedman, who now owned the property. sold the two-story frame building with the condition it be moved off the lot so that a new hollow tile and stucco structure could be erected.  The November 10, 1938  newspaper reported, "Upon the sale of the old building which was purchased by Fred Evertson, agreement was made that it should be moved from the site by November 15.  The old frame house was declared to have been a landmark for more than four decades." ( This news report said the old Florence Butt grocery building was moved.  I wonder where it was moved to.)
The new building, with space for two store fronts, was designed by architect A. W. Malin.
The first two tenants in the new building were Star Cleaners at 814 Main, and Durrin's Confectionery at 812 Main. Both were owned by Charles Durrin.  Durrin's Confectionery sold soft drinks, tobacco, candy, and ice cream.  It featured a soda fountain and "private booths".
By late 1946 Main Book and Stationery had opened at 814 Main Street. Books could also be rented there. I found that curious since by that time there was a public library in Kerrville.  Perhaps the selection at the library was inadequate, or perhaps the library wasn't available to everyone.
These were the first of many retail businesses in this space.

1013 Main Street

This Victorian house at 1013 Main Street, now home to Creations, a quilters' supply shop, was the home of William Henry and Florence Rawson. Reported to date to 1895, it may be slightly older.
The 1899 sketch below shows a much more heavily decorated house that we have today.
Rawson was a druggist and owner of Rawson Drug Store.  He also served two terms as mayor of Kerrville from 1896-1900.
 

Rawson came to Kerrville in 1890 seeking the same thing that so many early settlers sought--improved health. His health being restored, he opened a pharmacy here. Rawson's Drug Store building on Water Street stands today and is known as the Davis Building. I wrote about it here  http://kerrhistory.blogspot.com/2012/05/davis-building.html

ca 1932

On June 16, 1890, W. H. Rawson purchased 4 building lots from James A. Tivy for $450 ($50 cash, and a $400 note).  Two of those lots were on Main Street, the other two adjoining lots were on Live Oak Street.  The note was paid and the lien released by Tivy on November 12, 1891. The Rawsons probably built the house shortly after that. 

ca 1899

In 1899 the city of Kerrville valued the property at $850; the next year it was valued at $1350. The  most reasonable explanation for the increase is that an addition was put on.
Florence died  in 1914.  W. H. Rawson continued to reside here until he died in April 1931. They are buried at Glen Rest Cemetery.

1016 Main Street

This neo-Classical house has been referred to as the "old Earl Garrett house", but really it should be called the "Dede Garrett house".  Dede and Jesmyr Garrett were the first owners.  Their son was Victor Earl Garrett, known as Earl.

It's been described as a two story house, but it might be better thought of it as a story and a half.  The upper floor isn't apparent from Main Street.  One has to walk around to the side to spot the shed dormer for the second story windows.

ca 1932.  Kerr Regional History Center collection.

There was a flurry of real estate transactions on this property in 1918 and 1921.
On May 1, 1918, Charles Schreiner et al sold the two lots this house sits on to Leroy D. Garrett for $500 ($100 cash, $400 in a lien). Then, on March 21, 1921, L. D. Garrett sold these two lots to A. C. Schreiner for $400 and on the same day Schreiner released the earlier lien.
Then, two months later, on June 28, 1921, L. D. Garrett purchased this property back from A. C. Schreiner for $3,300.
I can only surmise from this that Garrett sold the lots to A. C. Schreiner for the purpose of erecting a house, then bought it back when finished.
In 1963 L. D. "Dede" Garrett retired from the Chas. Schreiner Company after 54 years. The retirement announcement included the statement that he made his home at 1016 Main Street within one block of where he was born.  He ws also a member of the firm of Garrett Insurance Agency.
Garrett lived here until his death in 1981. Members of the family continued to live here until 1991.
Since then it has been a commercial property.

1028 Main Street

The stucco craftsman house is the Seaborn "Dick" Eastland house.  Eastland was the owner of the Kerrville Light and Power plant until he sold it in 1925 to Texas Public Utilities. At that time he announced he intended to devote himself fully to his Kerrville Ice and Cold Storage Co. business.

Originally part of the Tivy estate, Capt. Charles Schreiner later purchased this property.
Then, on May 1, 1918, Capt. Charles Schreiner's sons sold this "property, premises, and improvements" to Seaborn Eastland, Jr. for $3000.  The price indicates there was a house here. Unfortunately, the 1918 Sanborn maps don't extend far enough out to show this property.  The 1924 map does show a house of a very similar footprint to the house today, similar enough to make me think the oldest part of this house predates 1918.  
However, the November 11, 1926, Kerrville Mountain Sun mentioned "Mrs. S. Eastland entertained ... in her lovely new home on Main Street."   The style of this house puts it squarely in the 1920s. It is possible the old house was removed from the property and a new one build.  It is also possible that this house was an older existing house that was extensively remodeled in 1926.  The newspaper frequently called extensive remodels "new".  Considering that the Eastlands were living on Main Street in 1920 at this location, I am inclined to think this house was a remodel of the older home.

ca 1932.  Kerr Regional History Center collection.

Eastland lived here until his death in 1970. Today this house serves commercial purposes.

625 Main Street

(Yes, I took these photos on different days!)
This former gas station was erected in late 1962 for the Magnolia Petroleum Co.

The Kerrville Mountain Sun of August 12, 1962, reported, "The Temple Lumber Co. of Kerrville was low bidder and awarded the contract by the Magnolia Petroleum Co. for the construction of a new station at the corner of Main and Sidney Baker Streets. ... workmen will demolish the old station at the site, and the new $12,500 structure is scheduled for completion by Dec. 10. "

Magnolia Petroleum became part of Mobil Oil in 1959.  A Mobil station operated here into the 1990s. 
(I do not know how it is that Magnolia Petroleum was building a station after it was merged into Mobil, but this is how it was reported in the newspaper.)

1100 E. Main Street

ca 1932

Undated early photo, Kerr County Historical Commission collection

This is another nineteenth century house in Kerrville. Are you surprised by how many there are?

In 1891 Mary Virginia Gillespie purchased three lots of land along Main Street from Captain J. A. Tivy for $275, partly in cash, the remainder due later.  The debt was paid off in December 1894. It is probable this folk Victorian was built at that time, and definitely no later than 1898 because in 1899 the house and three lots were assessed at $800 for tax purposes. This may have been an investment property as I can find no record of Miss Gillespie in newspapers, other county records, or census records for Kerr County.

She sold the property in 1901 to Miss Mary E. Parsons.  The property changed hands several times over the next three decades.  By1934, Mr. and Mrs. Edwin H. Keith moved in. He established his cabinet shop at the rear of the property. They were renters for about 10 years, at which point J. R. Burnett sold them the house and land. Ed Keith died in 1950, but his widow, Addie, lived here until her death in 1989.  Today this house is home to professional offices.

Cailloux Theater and the Kerr County War Memorial

Parking lot view to show the brickwork of the original building.

Recently there has been talk about expanding and adding names to the Kerr County War Memorial.  The War Memorial under discussion is apparently the one located on the Courthouse grounds that was erected in 1991.  I'm curious to know if the discussion includes an even larger War Memorial that exists just one block away--the Cailloux Theater.

In 1944 an effort began in Kerr County to establish a War Memorial in the form of a building that would also honor all who served.
The initial effort was intended to raise money for a memorial auditorium, club rooms, and public library annex next to Antler Stadium. Fundraising was going along at a slow steady pace when the Kerr County War Memorial Association (KCWMA) received a generous bequest. In 1951 Walter Jarmon, who owned two lots at the corner of Washington and Main streets, left his entire estate for the benefit the Kerr County War Memorial Association.  It was decided to build a war memorial building on the Main Street property instead.

In 1954 the KCWMA deeded the property to the county on the condition that the property be used "toward erection or equipping or/and maintaining a public building to be dedicated to the honor of those who have served the United States in all Wars."  The county had two years to use the property or it would revert to the KCWMA.
They did not meet the deadline and it did revert to the KCWMA.  In 1959 the organization deeded the property to the City of Kerrville and in 1960 the Kerrville Municipal Auditorium opened. In 2000 the Cailloux family made a generous gift to expand and improve the Municipal Auditorium.  As a result the building was renamed the Cailloux Theater when it reopened March 27, 2003.
The building must remain as a war memorial or it reverts to the KCWMA or its successor.
To meet this requirement, the memorial to Kerr County's war dead through Vietnam is found carved in stone on the stairway landing in the lobby.  Large as it is, it is easy to miss.  In fact, since I usually just go directly to my seat and don't dawdle in the lobby, I didn't even know it was there until a few days before I wrote this.

"In memory of those persons who gave their lives in the service to and defense of this country."

Memorial wall in lobby

Friedman Building

This hollow tile and stucco building at 812 and 814 Main Street was erected in 1939 by Mary  Friedman.  The first tenant, at 814, was Durrin's Confectionery, operated by Charles Durrin.  The shop featured a soda fountain and "private booths". The architect was A. W. Malin, the general contractor W.W. Miller & Son.
There had been a two-story frame store building at 812 Main St. which was the home of Samuel and Mary Friedman. It appears that they lived upstairs and rented out the first floor for commercial use.   The last retail occupants in the old building were Van's Sign Shop and one of the two locations of City Produce Market. In 1938 that building was sold to Fred Evertson, who moved it from the site. The November 10, 1938, Kerrville Mountain Sun said "The old frame house was declared to have been a landmark for more than four decades."
The "landmark building" that was removed was the original location of Florence Butt's grocery store. I haven't found mention of where the house was moved to.  Do any of my loyal readers know?

The Aubey Building

When I went to take a photo today, I found that the plate glass window was boarded up.  I'll take another when it's replaced.  I wanted to have this blog entry follow the Pachek house.

This building at 809 Main Street, Kerrville, between Earl Garrett and Washington Streets, was constructed for Gertrude Aubey, wife of Horace Aubey, in 1939.   She had previously been married to, and widowed by, Cleve Wheelus, whose studio was next door.
The contractor was P. M. Wright.

Marguerite Pachek had been the pharmacist at Pampell's.  In 1939 she and her husband, Joe, opened Pachek's Plaza Drug in this building.  The Kerrville Seafood Market, owned by Horace Aubey, was also in the building.  Plaza Drug was here about 10 years, then moved around the corner to Earl Garrett Street across from the current location of the Kerr Arts and Cultural Center.  Today the building houses professional offices.

W. G. Garrett, Jr. House

Described as a "five-room cottage at the junction of Broadway and Main Street", this late Victorian house at 1105 E. Main Street, was erected in 1912 for Mary and William G. Garrett, Jr. The name of the contractor, as reported in the San Antonio Express for Feb. 12, 1912, was W. L. Council, inc.
They were married June 9, 1912 and owned this home for the rest of their lives.  W. G. Garrett, Jr. died in 1965 and Mary in 1981. They are buried at Glen Rest Cemetery.
William G. Garrett, Jr. was a brother of Earl Garrett for whom the street is named.

Today it houses BCFS Health and Human Services.

UPDATE:  On January 22, 2016, this home was demolished by the Cailloux Foundation who were the new owners.

The Brown Building

Have you ever noticed the letter "B" in the corner trim work of this early art deco building at the corner of Main and Earl Garrett Streets? It was erected for W. B. Brown in 1926, so this a monogram.  

The original building on this corner was nearly destroyed by fire in December 1925, so Brown's primary goal in constructing this replacement building was to make it "fireproof".

The June 17, 1926, Kerrville Mountain Sun reported "Construction of the modern one-story, fire-proof store building for W. B. Brown at the corner of Earl Garrett and Main Streets will start in the next few days.  Architect’s plans for the Brown building include space for three stores and a drive-in filling station, to be built of reinforced concrete, brick and tile with a foundation for additional stories.  The contract was awarded Monday to W. C. Thrailkill of San Antonio."  Like the Bahre Building, this is another where the builders planned ahead for the possibility of expansion, although here too the second floor was never built.

The drive-in filling station, initially owned by R. A. Remschel, was on the corner. There is evidence of the gas station still visible. In the photo below, look at the telephone pole on the corner. You can see where the sidewalk is cut at an angle behind the pole.  That is where cars used to pull up to the gas pump.   

H E B

The HEB on Main Street in Kerrville is the sixth location of Kerrville's hometown grocery store.

The very first location of the store that became HEB was in this house, below, in the 800 block of Main Street. Florence Butt opened her first store here in 1905. The family lived upstairs.

On December 26, 1911, Florence Butt moved her store to a busier location in the rock Masonic Building on Earl Garrett Street and advertised "Mrs. C. C. Butt.  The Sanitary Grocery Store".  This was the second location.

On December 30, 1921 the C. C. Butt Grocery ran an advertisement in the Kerrville Mountain Sun announcing the store was converting to a cash and carry system. "We will discontinue our delivery service, except that we will deliver orders amounting to $5.00 or more each afternoon after 4 o'clock."  It also stated "We will sell on a very small margin of profit because our business expense will be very low ... and we know that we can save you more than 10 per cent on your monthly grocery bill."

In June, 1925, a Piggly Wiggly store opened in the building at 233 Earl Garrett--shown below, just a few doors down from the C. C. Butt grocery store.  Florence's son Howard, who by this time was running the business, bought the Piggly Wiggly 5 months later and announced that he would be consolidating the two stores into one. This, then, was the location of  C. C. Butt Piggly Wiggly for the next ten years--the third location.

 In August, 1936, a big new C. C. Butt Piggly Wiggly opened at 825 Water Street--the fourth location, about where One Schreiner Center is today. It included a parking lot for 100 cars.  Although opened as a Piggly Wiggly, the store was owned by the H. E. Butt Grocery Company.  HEB owned a number of Piggly Wigglys in Texas.   In February, 1944, the name of all the H. E. Butt-owned Piggly Wiggly stores was changed to HEB.

In June, 1954, the fifth store opened at the corner of Water and Quinlan Streets, where Hastings is today.  I don't have a picture if that store yet.

In March, 1984, the HEB store on Main Street opened, so that is number 6 in the line of Kerrville stores.

And now we have another HEB on Sidney Baker South.