Being tasked to sell an older home can sometimes involve one in a bit of an enigma.
Minutes from the Pearl redevelopment sits a home from San Antonio’s Gilded Age: 609 E. Carson, an officer’s home. A grand example of Victorian style, the home is individually designated historic and located within the historic district known as Government Hill (formerly “Snake Hill,” a telling moniker). This residential area serving famous Fort Sam Houston boasts many structures from the late 19th century. Gleaming wood floors, gingerbread siding, a porte cochère, and a carriage house all recall the days when the clippity-clop of horse hooves was heard on San Antonio streets, and residents sported parasols and bowler hats.
I met the home’s owner, Carolyn Huebner Rankin, a 40-year resident, while marketing a property on Mason Street in the late 1990s. Forging a bond, we talked about the community over many hours in the study of the Carson home, and she shared her knowledge about the home’s history.
When it came time for her to sell the home earlier this year, I was the listing agent and took seriously the task of providing accurate, documented information about the home. Hence my trip down the “rabbit hole.”
As the story goes, 609 E. Carson was the former faculty house for West Texas Military Academy (WTMA). Located on an attic stairwell beam, one finds a purported yet unverifiable “builder’s mark.”
The mark reads: “?~1890/January 22 1960?” with the essence of the backstory being that it was built in 1890 and should last until 1960, seemingly an unusual declaration for a builder. Discovery of a building permit would verify the build date. The search begins.
The owner had earlier researched the Texana Room records in the downtown Main Library without result, so I turned to the City’s archives office, connecting with Nat Norton. Placing a Freedom of Information Act request resulted in Norton finding a 1955-era tax assessors record with the “year built” filled in as 1890. Interestingly, the current tax record shows a build date of 1932. No building permit was found, but we’ll hope the earlier county records are accurate since they match the oral history.
One tunnel of the rabbit-hole leads to the record of the home’s ownership by the family of Ruby and Pearl West passed down from their mother. Pearl West was apparently a socialite of some renown in town. A handwritten note from the Wests gives a nod to the 1890 build date of the home. The Wests owned the Carson home from 1921 to 1964. Their segment of the story is for someone else to share.
A parallel tunnel searching deed records finds a connection to a J. Tom Williams, dated 1902. Williams was an instructor at WTMA, according to documentation from TMI-Episcopal, as the school formerly called Texas Military Institute is now known. WTMA was located on Government Hill from 1893-1911. A history provided by TMI-Episcopal is an interesting read. Of note, the future Gen. Douglas MacArthur was a graduate.
While this doesn’t confirm the faculty house scenario, it does add credibility. The Carson property is visibly shown in a haunting undated photo, graciously provided by TMI-Episcopal, from what appears to be the parade grounds in front of the old WTMA. The properties were on neighboring lots. Williams was headmaster of TMI for a time at the Alamo Heights location.
Further documentation of approximate age is available in the form of a Sanborn Fire Map dated 1904 that shows both WTMA and the 609 E. Carson home. This further confirms a date of construction at least prior to the date of the map.
The design of 609 E. Carson, according to local lore, was attributed to Alfred Giles, a famous architect of the time. Giles is renowned for his numerous and famous contributions across the city and state, including the Steves and Groos houses in the King William District and the Gillespie County courthouse in Fredericksburg. A remarkable example of Giles’ work one street north is Lambermont, located at 950 E. Grayson St. However, Mary Carolyn George, an expert on Giles’ work, suggests the Carson property is not of his aesthetic. This section of the puzzle remains unsolved.
Looking a bit earlier at deed history of the land only, one finds further connections to significant contributors to San Antonio’s evolution. Apparently, two local developers of the King William District, Confederate Army Maj. Hardin B. Adams and B. Wickes, were former owners of the lot on which the residence sits. There are Adams and Wickes Streets in King William, giving at least some indication of the stature of those two individuals. Both the King William Association and the San Antonio Conservation Society have offered to research possible connections, but these things take time and likely don’t directly involve the Carson structure.
Exploring the rabbit hole produces no carrot in the form of a building permit. Happily, the provenance did partly reveal itself. Fascinatingly, the rabbit tunnels show the intertwining of the movers and shakers of early San Antonio and their legacies left for our enjoyment todaysuch as 609 E. Carson. This is a story that needs further research, which my full-time profession may never allow. For now, it’s hoped that some may be introduced to a bit more of our city’s history.
When passing by old houses in town, we should remember that each one of them has a story to tell, rabbit holes and all.
A very interesting story. Have you researched the census records for the address? It will show who lived there and what their occupation was.
Good day Scott,
I have not yet fleshed this out to that extent but would like too. Much of the intent behind the research was oriented towards providing evidence about the structure for prospective purchasers. The chain of title was tremendous in this effort (and providing research clues) as it showed ownership. I fully agree that to bring this all to life the story including people who lived there and presumably worked near by would expand the story famously. Thank you for your suggestion.
Someone bought the house before we could get to town to see it, darn it!
Hi Lacy,
Such an amazing area. The redevelopment spurred by the Pearl seems to be having an incredible impact on many surrounding communities. While no other property will have the specific story this one has, there are surely others offering their own unique history equally as interesting. Of course, part of the fun is in tracking that down. The experience with this property was enriching considering who owned it, and it’s involvement with the military and education.
Presuming you’re from out of San Antonio, welcome to our fair city!
Great house! When J. Tom Williams purchased the property in January 1902, he paid only $900 for the lot. (He purchased additional adjoining land in 1906 for $800.) This low purchase price generally would indicate there was no building on the lot. He married Ida Flynn in June 1903 near Nashville. Their wedding announcements indicate that they would return to San Antonio and be “at home” at 609 Carson Street. Though I haven’t found a building permit, this indicates to me that the house was built prior to his marriage, sometime in 1902-early 1903.
Hi Maria,
Your comment encapsulates exactly the dilemma. According to the chain of title Mr. Williams bought the lot but it’s not clear if a structure existed. Oral history offers that MacArthur spent the night in the structure and he graduated WTMA in 1897. Tax record of 1950’s has a date of 1890 so we put much weight on that as an official public resource. Sanborn Fire map of 1904 shows structure in place. All this in conjunction with your findings substantiates at least an early 1900’s date. Not having that building permit creates challenges. Sure wish that could be located. The purported ‘builder’s mark’ just creates confusion. Part of the entertainment when researching historic structures for sale. If you’d care to share the wedding announcement my email is Danny@msrpsa.com. I’d love to see it! Regards, Danny
Danny, my research correlates with Maria’s information (I would certainly not expect to disagree with San Antonio’s premier architectural historian!). Not only is the $900 purchase price in 1902 telling, the deed also specifies “tract or parcel of land.” Furthermore, 609 Carson does not appear in a city directory until the 1903 edition (which was compiled in October 1902). In 1901, J Tom Williams, soon to become superintendent of WTMA, was residing at 530 Carson. Additionally, I may have discovered a reference to that elusive building permit. J S Johnson, Episcopal Bishop of Texas, received a permit on 2/7/1902 (two weeks after Williams purchased the lot) to erect a two-story building on Carson Street for $2100. While no address number is provided, this seems very likely to be the house at 609, supported by the 1904 Sanborn map. Williams held title to the property, selling it in 1909, but perhaps the Church provided the financing for their new superintendent. The possibility that this house was designed by Giles is intriguing, and logical in that Giles was the architect for the WTMA, which was built in 1893. But if Mary Carolyn George has her doubts, so do I. One thing I’m pretty certain of however, is that 609 Carson was built in 1902. Now, about that graffiti in the attic: that’s still a mystery to me.
Michael,
Thank you so much!
The sharing received from having generated this little tome is heartwarming. Your information is appreciated.
Meeting you and Maria (and others) here has already educated me about additional resources for future work. It would be much appreciated if you could email the permit you found. While it’s after the fact it would be useful. (Danny@msrpsa.com)
I took a quick peek at the tax record for 530 E. Carson and entertainingly it shows a build date of 1928 giving further support to evidence that using it for historic dating at least is suspect.
As far as the penciled ‘builder’s mark’ it’s a guess (uneducated at that) that it was more likely done in 1960 (January 22) to somehow attempt to document the 1890 date maybe based on what was the understood oral history at that time.
I appreciate your expansion of the story.
Highest regards,
Danny
I don’t know why this is referred to as a “rabbit’s hole”. This is typical when looking into historic buildings and trying to establish provenance. It would become a “rabbit hole” if all of a sudden it went in a completely different direction or “Alice in Wonderland” scenario where you start to find things… not just normal discrepancies and coincidences of historical research. Making it seem more complicated than it is makes people shy away from searching.
As to the construction date, it is unlikely that the builder’s mark in 1890 did not have the day written. Seems like there was major work in 1960 and it was noted to provide info for the future.
There is also the possibility that the 1890 date given in the 1950s tax record could be just as wrong as the 1940s date given on my great great grandparents’ house in South Town that was built in mid 1880s basically as is today but without the modern plumbing and wiring. Assessor dates are commonly wrong and refer many times to major building permits, or a property class “pre-war”, “pre-1940”, “post 1890”, etc.
Perhaps people referred to the building in retrospect as circa 1890 since the campus it was associated with was from that period. People’s oral histories could conflate this house with the actual Giles house as being “the Giles House in Government Hill”.. it could be a simple mix up of someone at some time confused Grayson and Carson, confused a 6 and 0 with 9 and 0. There is also the possibility that the house could have been built elsewhere in 1890 and then moved prior to 1904 Sanborn (very common in late 1800s and early 1900s.)
That is why photos help, and keeping an open mind until conjecture becomes historical fact. Happy hunting.
FYI… googling ‘ 609 e carson san antonio 1905 williams ‘ in the Books tab has an entry for the address of a Kappa Sigma Fraternity brother Robert Lee Morgan, 1902 Omega, living at 609 Carson St, San Antonio, Texas (that would have been in 1902).
Address Book of the Kappa Sigma Fraternity 1869-1906, published Nov 3, 1907.
Also, the 1920 US Census has the Williams (J Tom, the home’s owner, with and his wife Ida and daughter Sara still living there on campus with Robert Morgan as one of the many borders (most likely with his wife and 3 kids).
Also, the house might not have been designed by Giles himself, but maybe instead someone from his office. However, it is more likely that people just gave a blanket statement that Giles designed the campus, and so just assumed that the house was part of the campus as part of that project instead of being built by a local builder.
It would be interesting to see if there are any similar homes around. Many times builders and architects have ‘standard details’ they use.
Good Morning Steve,
I hope using the ‘rabbit hole’ term didn’t give a negative connotation as that was not the intent. For me it was quite the opposite as the research led me to Dignowity’s, E.A. Wickes Nease (who sold to Col. Williams) from West Va., Col.’s Adams & Wicks, and so much more! Then there is a 2nd deed to Col. Williams for the same lot and a portion of lot 7 for $1 dated 1908. Maybe a land dispute settlement?
The MacArthur rumor of having slept in the home (when it may not have existed yet) and now your offering about Robert Lee Morgan, in addition to the West families are just a few of the people involved who add intrigue.
Additionally having read that apparently much of Giles sketche work was lost when a son allegedly burned the business makes one wonder further.
Your critique is noted and appreciated.
There is much more story here than time allows for research considering my full time profession. The hunting has indeed been happy, and the sharing here is only an improvement.
Thank you so much.
Great story; we need more stories like these as the Pearl development threatens many old homes that are not within historic districts. And speaking of which, King William is the King William Historic District.
Hi Rose,
Thank you so much.
If anything comes of this in addition to the sharing my hope is it’s this: “When passing by old houses in town, we should remember that each one of them has a story to tell, rabbit holes and all.”
Often those stories are not well documented and if so likely only orally. Along with you, I’d love to see this improved.
Hi Danny… this is fascinating information and history on this gorgeous home…. I also love to drive the historic areas and look st the stately old homes, done so all the years I have lived in San Antonio… and yes they all have history….Rabbit Holes and all…. thank you so much for sharing and congrats on your celebrity on the Rivard Report!!! ????????????
Hi Connie,
Thank you so much for your kind words. It’s appreciated more than you know. The folks here at Rivard have been courteous, responsive, and professional all along. This has been quite enjoyable and educational.
Regards,
Danny
Good morning to all,
Our family just had the privilege of purchasing the Carson St. House and have embarked upon a rabbit hole discovery of our own. I’d love to connect with all of you so that we can learn more about the house my family and I hope to live in for as long as Mrs. Rankin did! My email is tiffanyoneilltx@gmail.com and would love to connect or see any of the above referenced information.
Tiffany,
Wishing you all the best while you make your very own ‘history’.