Mom & 226
Mom gave me this information last month during a lengthy phone call. I had asked her when she moved into 226, in the bosom of the King William Historical District of San Antonio (first called "Saurkraut Bend") which was designated in 1967 as the first historical district in Texas.
"Dominant in this landscape are 75 or more Victorian homes of the late 19th century in various stages of restoration, ranging from the lavish Morton/Polk/Mathis House to dilapidated anachronisms waiting to be born anew.
The three streets comprising the heart of the district are a wilderness of turrets, chimneys, balconies, and porches resting among trees. It is a landscape that does not nourish avarice or greed. There is a monolithic poise about the neighborhood, a quietness that makes King William an oasis of calm near the city's hub.
To hurry would destroy the spirit of the place. This spirit is its charm and the reason San Antonians are rediscovering this decayed inner-city section.
The San Antonio River winds southward from downtown, forming the northern boundary of King William. The city's River Corridor Commission's preliminary plan is for further landscaping and development of the river through the neighborhood finished before the bicentennial celebrations in 1976.
The exodus of San Antonians from the area toward the suburbs began after World War II and continued until the mid-Sixties. During the war, those who lived in the bigger homes received tax breaks from the government for converting their homes to apartments because of the housing shortage. Some remained duplexes or single apartments, but since 1970, more and more owners are reconverting to single family dwellings.
Homes in the area reflect almost every major architectural influence from the 1860s to the 1920s: neoclassical, European, native, Victorian, Greek Revival."
--copied from Texas Monthly magazine, April, 1974.
Mamaw & George & Mom & Martha moved from their West Craig home into Mamoo & Papoo's front two bedrooms for 6 months just after Mom graduated from Baylor University (attended 9/41-1/45 including the summer of 1944) while 226 was being remodeled. Mom was sure of the date because she remembers precisely where she was when she heard that World War II had ended: she & Mamaw were putting the finishing touches on the refinishing of the side porch wooden floor, on their hands & knees. Soon thereafter, they moved into their limestone home.
Historically important as one of the original houses in this historic district and thereby earning a Texas Historical Marker medallion in 1962, 226 was built in 1877-78 by Mr. Ernst Altgelt who founded the town of Comfort. It eventually became several upstairs (accessible only by an outdoor stairway) & downstairs apartments. Mamaw, after much research, directed the 1945 renovations which included moving tall inner walls, installing a steep indoor staircase with no landing between the dining & living rooms, and adding a new kitchen (where the old bathroom was in the extraneous rear addition which was added sometime after 1880), 2 full bathrooms upstairs and a powder room downstairs. She copied ideas from Castroville & Pleasanton period homes and specifically Mrs. Melanie Naeglin's stairway. Interestingly, once that major project was completed, Mamaw accidentally discovered that her copy of Mrs. Naeglin's stair matched exactly the previously hidden 1878 basement stair in every way. Mamaw was both thrilled & proud. She loved accuracy in details.
"Dominant in this landscape are 75 or more Victorian homes of the late 19th century in various stages of restoration, ranging from the lavish Morton/Polk/Mathis House to dilapidated anachronisms waiting to be born anew.
The three streets comprising the heart of the district are a wilderness of turrets, chimneys, balconies, and porches resting among trees. It is a landscape that does not nourish avarice or greed. There is a monolithic poise about the neighborhood, a quietness that makes King William an oasis of calm near the city's hub.
To hurry would destroy the spirit of the place. This spirit is its charm and the reason San Antonians are rediscovering this decayed inner-city section.
The San Antonio River winds southward from downtown, forming the northern boundary of King William. The city's River Corridor Commission's preliminary plan is for further landscaping and development of the river through the neighborhood finished before the bicentennial celebrations in 1976.
The exodus of San Antonians from the area toward the suburbs began after World War II and continued until the mid-Sixties. During the war, those who lived in the bigger homes received tax breaks from the government for converting their homes to apartments because of the housing shortage. Some remained duplexes or single apartments, but since 1970, more and more owners are reconverting to single family dwellings.
Homes in the area reflect almost every major architectural influence from the 1860s to the 1920s: neoclassical, European, native, Victorian, Greek Revival."
--copied from Texas Monthly magazine, April, 1974.
Mamaw & George & Mom & Martha moved from their West Craig home into Mamoo & Papoo's front two bedrooms for 6 months just after Mom graduated from Baylor University (attended 9/41-1/45 including the summer of 1944) while 226 was being remodeled. Mom was sure of the date because she remembers precisely where she was when she heard that World War II had ended: she & Mamaw were putting the finishing touches on the refinishing of the side porch wooden floor, on their hands & knees. Soon thereafter, they moved into their limestone home.
Historically important as one of the original houses in this historic district and thereby earning a Texas Historical Marker medallion in 1962, 226 was built in 1877-78 by Mr. Ernst Altgelt who founded the town of Comfort. It eventually became several upstairs (accessible only by an outdoor stairway) & downstairs apartments. Mamaw, after much research, directed the 1945 renovations which included moving tall inner walls, installing a steep indoor staircase with no landing between the dining & living rooms, and adding a new kitchen (where the old bathroom was in the extraneous rear addition which was added sometime after 1880), 2 full bathrooms upstairs and a powder room downstairs. She copied ideas from Castroville & Pleasanton period homes and specifically Mrs. Melanie Naeglin's stairway. Interestingly, once that major project was completed, Mamaw accidentally discovered that her copy of Mrs. Naeglin's stair matched exactly the previously hidden 1878 basement stair in every way. Mamaw was both thrilled & proud. She loved accuracy in details.