Low Water Crossing Bridge

I have to offer a note of explanation before preceding with this post.  When I started this blog I had in mind that I would use it to share information about historical buildings I planned to visit.  I would photograph, research and report on my findings.  I had certain parameters that I set about what I would and would not post.  The result of my boundaries was that I found that I was so confined by them that I couldn't write. I was also frustrated because due to the heat, illness, work, school, and life that I had not been able to take all the little trips I had planned;  I felt that I could not write about just the things I was finding where I lived.  But this little bridge that I'm going to post on changed my whole perspective.  With its discovery I realized that I'm living in the middle of a vast amount of historical treasure that I need to discover and share.  So, there are no boundaries on this blog anymore.  I'm going to post it as I find it and I'm going to enjoy myself!

This little bridge crosses the San Antonio River at E Woodlawn and River Avenue.  It has been closed to traffic for many years, but previously it connected with the golf course.  It is part of Brackenridge Park, too. It was built in 1939 as a New Deal Project.  There is a faint imprint in the concrete that has the initials "NYA" (National Youth Administration) and the year 1939.

I had no idea this little bridge was nestled in this quiet neighborhood of Craftsman style cottages  until I saw it mentioned on the nomination for Brackenridge Park into the National Register of Historic Places.  With the help of Google satellite I found it on the map; it was just a short distance from my office.  This was my first realization of the nearness of history all around me.

I drove over after work that same day.  Even though I knew where it was on River Avenue my heart just skipped when I saw it.  There it is, there it is!  I had found my treasure.  I had to circle around and park on one of the streets of the neighborhood since parking is prohibited on River Avenue.  I'm sure if anyone went by they had a good laugh at a professionally dressed woman in 2 inch heels walking across the sidewalk on the left side of the bridge.  Equally funny, I'm sure, was the scene of me squatting down to make the picture of the imprint in the bridge! 

This was such a peaceful setting; the only sounds were birds calling and the ripple of water falling over the steps.  I could have lingered for quite a while to reflect on the scenes this little bridge had seen since its construction. I did wonder about the young men that helped to build it and the hands that had pushed the stamp with the NYA logo into the wet cement on a day long ago.

Brackenridge Golf Course

A recent post covered the history of the Borglum House.  I had a double surprise when I visited it to make pictures for the post (I love it when this happens!)  .  It was July 3rd and my office had closed at noon; since the Borglum House was just around the corner I headed out to find it.  I have to admit that although it is close to where I work and that I've been in and around this area for many years I had never been down on the golf course property where it is located.  

After I finished making pictures I noticed this clock by the clubhouse and decided to walk over.

There was a marker with information about the early history of the golf course. As I stood in the hot sun reading and photographing the marker I saw a small building sitting to the side.  I probably wouldn't have paid it much attention except that it had several plaques embedded in the wall and that means it might be a building with a story.

 



 

It is a building with a story, it was part of the New Deal.  It was one of several projects done on the golf course by the National Youth Administration and is referenced in the Park's nomination to the National Register of Historic Places (see below). This simple marker is the only clue to the building's past.

 

View of the back of the clubhouse, seen from the course



The nomination form for the National Register of Historic Places summarizes the history of the golf course so well that I have to quote it here:

Noted golf course architect A.W. Tillinghast of Philadelphia designed the eighteen‐hole Brackenridge Golf Course, which was completed in 1916. The wooded site, filled with native trees, spanned both sides of the river and the water works channel that ran directly through the course. Footbridges spanned the river and channel. The course has been extensively remodeled since its completion, most notably in the late 1960s when US Highway 281 cut through the park’s western edge. The Tillinghast layout was left intact with the exception of the twelfth and thirteenth holes. The course was redesigned to fit the reconfigured site by course manager Murray Brooks and consultant George A. Hoffman. A major course renovation in 2008 restored Tillinghast’s design, to the extent possible.

Three stone bridges, built to span both the old water works channel and river, still stand at various points on the golf course. Originally there were five of these structures, all likely built by NYA workers; NYA construction of the bridge over the water works channel on hole number three is documented in newspaper accounts. NYA workers also completed a starter house (standing), caddy house, tee boxes and drinking fountains.

 

The Tudor style clubhouse of rubble stone, concrete, and wood was designed by local architect Ralph Cameron and completed in 1923. The main entrance to the building is on the north through an arched doorway topped with a fanlight. The west elevation features a tall chimney and rounded tower with conical roof. The tower is topped with an original weather vane depicting a golfer. An open porch and doorway on the east elevation has been closed in. A gable‐roofed room projects from the east elevation, connecting to a second story gabled dormer with tall chimney.  Walls are of rubble stone and the east elevation features half timber finishes on the upper level. Chimneys are of brick and stone. Windows and doors have a combination of curved and flat brick lintels and arches and brick and concrete sills. Windows are a combination of wood casement and steel frame. The original shingled roof has been replaced with asphalt shingles. The building was remodeled in 1968 by Johnson and Dempsey architects.

The Tudor style of the clubhouse is obvious from both front and back. 

 I have been unable to confirm that this is one of the three remaining bridges, but suspect that it probably is



I stepped inside the pro shop to ask if anyone knew about the history of the little, at that time, unidentified building.  One of the guys walked out to look at it with me; he didn't know what the building originally was, but he did know about the history of the course and explained how the construction of the freeway altered the course design! The inside of the building was beautiful, too but I was so distracted thinking about the little building that I didn't look around or make any pictures!

Some interesting facts: 1)  The golf course, and much of this area, has been the subject of numerous archeological studies and surveys that turned up valuable information about earlier cultures. 

2) In February 1922 the course was host to the first Texas Open tournament.  Other tournaments followed and eventually led to the creation of the PGA Tour.  Mike Souchak set a PGA Tour record  for lowest 72-hole score in the 1955 Texas Open played on this course; that record stood for 46 years. 

3)"Old Brack" had the honor of being the first course listed in the National Registry of Historic Courses.

Today the course is managed by the Alamo City Golf Trail, a non-profit management group that oversees seven courses. 

The view of the course from the Borglum House looks at the 17th hole

The Little Church of La Villita

There are many delightful surprises awaiting the visitor who passes through these gates into the La Villita Historic Arts Village. One of the pleasant discoveries in the Village is the Little Church.

The cornerstone of the church was laid on March 2, 1879.  Today it is a non-denominational church, and is a favorite setting for weddings.

In 1846, the Rev. J.W. De Vilbiss had bought a  site across the street from the current day church with the intention of building a Methodist church . He set up a bell, to denote the worship site, but did not build due to a problem with the title to the lot.  In 1879, German Methodists erected this Gothic Revival style church. 

A Norwegian Sailor named Olaf carved pegs and hinged the lancet shaped casement windows. The Episcopal diocese of West Texas bought the church in 1895 and in 1945 the title of the church property was acquired by the City of San Antonio.  (The church is a designated Texas landmark, but the medallion is missing.)

 

The Little Church holds regular services, but it is not unusual to pass by and see a wedding in progress.  Many years ago I had my little Brownie Scouts on a Saturday tour of downtown and we came upon a bride about to go up the steps to make her walk down the little aisle.  We quickly hushed the girls and told them to watch.  Most of the girls had never seen a real live bride, so they were quite impressed.  The adults were reaching for tissues to dab our eyes!

 An early picture of the church can be seen at History of La Villita. 

Borglum House (Pump House #2)

Today's door leads into a structure mentioned in a previous post about the Upper Pump House.

In 1885 George W Brackenridge purchased land about a mile downstream from the Upper Pump House and built a second pump house. He felt the original plant was becoming insufficient to meet the growing demand for safe water in San Antonio.

The pump house looks out on the Brackenridge Park Golf Course which was built in 1915-1916. It is just a few steps from the current Club House built in 1923. (future post)

Today the building is known as the Borglum House. Gutzon Borglum  lived here while designing the models for the carvings for Mount Rushmore.  He had come to San Antonio in 1924 at the request of the Texas Trail Drivers Association who were hoping to have him complete a sculpture honoring the early trail drivers.  Borglum leased this property and spent $7,000 remodeling the abandoned building and adding the 650 square foot wooden addition.   The addition of skylights and the serene views of the golf course made the property an ideal artist's studio. 

When Borglum left the studio in 1937 he gave his key to the director of the Witte Museum.  The studio would be used by various artist groups until 1961.  By the late 1970's the building was in a sad state of neglect, including the collapse of the roof.  Friends of the Park came together to save the property and in 1981 it was added to the Register of Historic Places. The building was used for a few years as an architect office, but then fell into disrepair again.  In 2007 it was included in an extensive renovation of Brackenridge Park and the golf course. 

Today there are no signs of the raceway that moved the water upstream to the reservoir and probably few people realize this charming little building's original purpose. 

Mission San Jose revisited

I began this blog with two posts about Mission San Jose.  The restoration work being done on the side of the chapel is finished, so I want to add some additional photographs here.

The Rose Window

There is a lot of folklore associated with this beautifully carved window, but it is because the origins of the window are not really known.  It is popularly attributed to Pedro Huizar, a sculptor and surveyor, who was said to have created the window in honor of a sweetheart named Rosa who died at sea on her way to Pedro. However, there are no records to indicate any truth to the tragic tale.  Huizar did perform a survey of San Jose and several other missions as they were being secularized. The window is thought to have been crafted by native craftsmen who trained at the Franciscan college in Zacatecas and dedicated to Santa Rosa of Lima, Peru.

Detail of roses on window

The intricate design of the window shows why San Jose has the title "Queen of the Missions".  In his journal, Fray Juan Agustín Morfí described the mission as being:

"It is, in truth, the first mission in America . . . in point of beauty, plan, and strength . . . there is not a presidio along the entire frontier line that can compare with it."  (from www.nps.gov)

 

The mission was built of limestone which gave it durability.  It is estimated that what is seen of the chapel today is 80% original even with the collapse of the bell tower in 1903 and the dome in 1873.

Sullivan Carriage House

Today when you walk through this door you are entering the San Antonio Botanical Garden.  But if you had walked through this door in 1896 you would have been walking into Daniel J. Sullivan's newly built carriage house.

Daniel J. Sullivan was a banker whose loans to ranchers had enabled the legendary cattle drives of the 19th century. He hired Alfred Giles, a well known architect in the region, to design the carriage house to be located behind his home at Fourth Street and Broadway.  The ground floor had stalls for the horses and storage for the carriages, while upstairs provided quarters for groomsmen.

Back side of the carriage house viewed from the Botanical Garden

After Mr. Sullivan died one of his daughters and her husband continued to live in the home. In the 1960's, through a Sullivan descendant's will, the property was transferred to the Archdiocese of San Antonio.  The house was sold and eventually torn down. 

Side entrance with handicapped accessible doors.  The gift shop is just on the right as you enter.
Can't you just see a horse drawn carriage rolling through these big doors?

The neglected carriage house almost met the same fate.  The Hearst Corporation had acquired the property and was using the building to store newsprint used in printing the now defunct San Antonio Light newspaper.  They needed to get rid of the building and offered it to the San Antonio Museum Association who turned it down.  The Hearst Corporation then turned to the Botanical Garden with  an offer of the carriage house, but the 7,675 square foot building had to be removed from the property in three months.

 

With support from the San Antonio Conservation Society funding was arranged on December 31, 1987 and the carriage house was ready for a move.  Each block was carefully cleaned and marked after being disassembled from the structure; following a careful move to its new location it was painstakingly reassembled, one stone at a time. 

 



As with many preservation projects the progress was slow.  Lack of funds had caused the project to come to a standstill until a couple who had observed the lack of progress from the windows of their nearby high rise apartment questioned why there was no work being done on the building.  Upon learning that there were no funds to continue the work this lovely couple wrote a check that enabled the carriage house to be completely renovated and put into use in 1995.

Today, the stalls are quaint seating areas for a nice little bistro type lunch restaurant, but sometimes I almost hear the big carriage horses stomping their hooves impatiently while waiting to be fed!

Entrance into the Bistro

 

 

Salvaged wood was used to construct the shelves and cabinets in the gift shop, located in the carriage storage area.  The stair case in the picture above leads to offices and a meeting/event room.

Just inside the front doors another staircase leads to the upper floor rooms.

The doors were re-milled and iron work was repaired and replaced.  Air conditioning and a sprinkler system brought the building up to city codes; the floors were treated and reinforced to increase fire resistance and support the heavy foot traffic. The building is completely handicap accessible, making entry into the gardens convenient for all visitors.

The Botanical Garden with its ever changing displays is the perfect setting for the Sullivan Carriage House to showcase its unique beauty.

Thanks to dedicated preservationists and generous donations the Carriage House is still nestled in the cityscape of San Antonio and will be admired and enjoyed by the generations to come.

Texas & Pacific Hospital

Last summer I took one of my dogs to a dog show in Longview, Texas.  He had a mid-day show time so we had Saturday morning free. I made a trip over to Marshall Pottery and found an intriguing old building on the way (imagine that!).

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

When Bentley and I were on our way to Marshall Pottery I spotted an old building as we were going into Marshall.  On our way back I circled around the block to get a better look and some pictures.  There really wasn't much place to park and it was clearly posted "no trespassing" so I had to take what I could get picture wise.  There were no signs or anything, really to identify the building.

It appeared to be a school.  There was a building to the side that was connected by a covered walkway on a lower level and an enclosed walkway on the upper level.  What puzzled me was that this side building had what appeared to be a carport that was under part of the back side of the building.  The area was big enough that several vehicles could have easily parked under the carport.  It seemed odd for a school but I thought maybe it was a Catholic school and that was where the nuns or priests lived.

Here's a full view from across the street, obviously this building has been abamdonded for a while.

Here's the view from the back,  you can see the covered walkway.

When I started searching on the internet for this building I first thought it was one of the old high school buildings but I couldn't get the address to line up with the historical information.  I looked at it on Google satellite and could see a circular drive in front of the building, very interesting.  And, this building is adjacent to some of the current day school buildings.

Some more searching and I had the correct identification.  This is the T & P Hospital and it served all employees of the Texas & Pacific Railroad. Knowing that it was hospital explains the building to the side; that was the emergency room where the ambulances or emergency transports could pull under the carport covering.

As usual I found myself picturing this building as it was when new and in use, although I had envisioned students coming and going and not patients and ambulances.   There was a roof fire about a year ago and the owner commented that he would love to sell the building.  The article in the Marshall paper stated that the building was inspected after the fire and was deteriorating.  It also has asbestos so it will probably continue to decline until it is torn down and a little piece of history is lost.