NPSFo-m ^ C -900 i ) OMB No. 1024-0018 United States Department of the interior National Park Service FEB 1 6 1SS3 National Register of Historic Places NATIONAL Registration Form REGISTER
This form is for use in nominating or requesting determinations of eligibility for individual properties or districts. See instructions in Guidelines for Completing National Register Forms (National Register Bulletin 16). Complete each item by marking 'x" in the appropriate box or by entering the requested information. If an item does not apply to the property being documented, enter "N/A" for "not applicable." For functions, styles, materials, and areas of significance, enter only the categories and subcategories listed in the instructions. For additional space use continuation sheets (Form 10-900a). Type all entries.
1. Name of Property historic name: Brenham School other names/site number: #88 2. Location street & number: 600 East Alamo N/A not for publication city, town: Brenham NTT vicinity state: Texas code: 048 county: Washington code: 477 zip code: 77833 3. Classification Ownership of Property Category of Property Number of Resources within Property X private X building(s) Contributing Noncontributing public-local district 1 0 buildings public-State site sites public-Federal structure structures object objects _] 0 Total Name of related multiple property listing: Number of contributing resources previously Historic and Architectural Resources of listed in the National Register 0 4. State/Federal Agency Certification
As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, as amended, I hereby certify that this X nomination request for determination of eligibility meets the documentation standards for registering properties in theTIational Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in aa^FR Part 60,>iwny opinion-thaprop^rty _x_ meets does not meet the National Register criteria. _ See
^nature of certifyio^'official Date Texas Historical Commission State or Federal agency and bureau
In my opinion, the property meets does not meet the National Register criteria. _ See continuation sheet.
Signature of commenting or other official Date
State or Federal agency and bureau
5. National Park Service Certification I, hereby, certify that this property is: antered In tut i^^ntered in the National Register. latlonal Beglster _ See continuation sheet. determined eligible for the National — Register. _ See continuation sheet. determined not eligible for the National Register.
removed from the National Register, other, (explain:)
Signature of the Keeper Date of Action 6. Function or Use Historic Functions (enter categories from instructions): Current Functions (enter categories from instructions): Education/Grammar and Secondary School Domestic/Multiple Dwelling
7. Description Architectural Classification Material (enter categories from instructions): (enter categories from instructions): foundation: Brick Victorian Italianate walls: Brick Stucco roof: Asphalt/Shingles other: Wood Concrete
Describe present and historic physical appearance.
[ X ] See continuation sheet
8. Statement of Significance Certifying official has considered the significance of this property in relation to other properties:
[ ] nationally [ ^ statewide [ ] locally
Applicable National Register Criteria [K ]A [ ]B [x ]C [ ]D
Criteria Considerations (Exceptions) [ ]A [ ]B [ ]C [ ]D [ ]E [ ]F [ ]G. N/A
Areas of Significance (enter categories from instructions): Period of Significance: Significant Dates: Education 1884-1909 1884 Architecture 1883-1884 1883-1884
Cultural Affiliation: N/A
Significant Person: Architect/Builder: N/A Russi, M.
State significance of property, and justify criteria, criteria considerations, and areas and periods of significance noted above.
X ] See continuation sheet NPS Fom 10-900-* OMB Appmml No 1024-0018 iS-Ml United States Department of the interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 7 Page i
7. Description
The Brenham School is a 2-story, stuccoed brick building set on a brick foundation in a T-plan. Articulated quoins on each corner, 2/2 windows with hoodmolds in sets of three, and a low-pitched gable roof define its Italianate style. The property is largely unaltered except for the removal of several brick chimneys, the addition of a front 1-story portico with concrete steps and floor, and interior alterations necessary to convert it into a multiple dwelling.
The 2-story, stuccoed brick Brenham School faces north on East Alamo Street (formerly Sandy Street) in a mixed residential and light industrial neighborhood approximately five blocks from the courthouse. It is set on a brick foundation and covered with a low-pitched intersecting side and front gable roof of asphalt shingles that replaced the original metal roof at an unknown time. Several chimneys also were removed at an unknown time. The main block of the building is approximately 48 X 75 feet with a projection from the center toward Alamo Street that is approximately 12 X 36 feet. Together, the main block and projection form a T-plan. The brick building reportedly has 15-inch walls covered in stucco, 24 inch by 30 foot notched and pegged cedar floor joists and roof beams, and marble door and window arches. A grassy lawn and a number of evergreen and deciduous plantings surround the building and lot. A driveway to the west of the building provides access to a rear parking area.
The principal (north) facade is dominated by the center, front gable projection. This projection is highlighted by a recessed banded inset in the gable and a set of three 2/2 double-hung wooden windows with hoodmolds under a segmental arch centered on the second story. A 1- story flat-roofed portico (added about 1909), supported by four wooden columns resting on concrete piers and floor, covers a center doorway with double doors and transom that is flanked by 2/2 double-hung wooden windows. The double doors are ornately carved with glass panels surrounded by ornamental frames. The north facade of the main block is identical with sets of three 2/2 double-hung wooden windows under a recessed arch found on the first and second stories on either side of the projection. Decorative quoins articulate each of the corners to complete the overall symmetry of the facade.
The 2-bay east and west facades are identical with sets of two 2/2 double-hung wooden windows under recessed arches defining each bay. Decorative quoins again highlight each corner. NPS FofiTi 10-9CI0-« OMB Apomml No 1024-0078 16-66) United States Department of the interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 7 Page 2
The rear (south) facade has a 2-story, wooden gallery with wooden stairs on the west leading to the upper gallery. This gallery replaced an earlier metal one designed as a fire escape.
Interior
When constructed in 1883-84, the school consisted of 10 rooms, five on each floor. The first floor contained 30 double desks in each of three rooms, 11 desks in two other rooms for German language instruction, and the vestibule contained the main stairway. The second floor was configured differently with one main room holding 90 double desks, two recitation rooms, a classroom, and a combined office and library in the fifth room. All interior walls are plastered with coarse, long strands of cow or horse hair and the floors are of white pine.
The interior was modified at an unknown time into eight apartunents that remain in use today. In spite of the alterations, the interior retains its basic integrity.
- MPS Fo 8. Significance The Brenham School (1883-84) is eligible under Criterion A and significant for serving as the first permanent educational facility in one of the earliest municipalities to support public education through taxation in Texas. It also is eligible under Criterion C. It is significant for its use of the Italianate style in an institutional building in Brenham and as one of the few remaining school buildings of this period and style in the State. In spite of the exterior and interior alterations, there is a high degree of integrity. The Brenham School is associated with the context "Community Development and Regional Expansion, 1870-1941." Criterion A: Education The Brenham School (1883-84) represents a persistent effort over many years to offer white residents of the city quality educational facilities. About 1840, the first school in Brenham was built in a hickory grove on four acres of land near Academy and Gay Hill Streets. ICnown as Hickory Grove School or Academy, the private institution offered a basic education to white boys and girls. In 1849, the school was conveyed to the Graham Lodge No. 20 and the Masons of Brenham became the directors of local educational concerns. They built a new and larger school of cedar and called it the Masonic Academy. This school continued in operation until about 1875. On March 15th, 1875, the 14th State Legislature passed "An Act to Authorize the Cities of Texas to Maintain Public Schools." This enabled cities to remove themselves from the county school system and implement independent systems within their corporate limits. The City Council of Brenham met on April 26, 1875, in response to a petition from the citizens of Brenham on this matter and agreed to establish its own school district. The city approved an ordinance establishing the school system on August 16, 1875. The white school began in September under the direction of W.C. Rote. On November 1, 1875, the council offered to its citizens an amendment to the city charter in this regard that passed by popular vote. Roughly two years later, the city council authorized the sale of the lot housing the Masonic Academy that was given to the city for the white school, and the purchase of the Dr. J.P. Key homestead, then owned by E.P. Davis, for $2,500. This homestead served as the school until sufficient funds were raised for the construction of a new building that did not exceed $10,000. Various wealthy local citizens and civic and social groups provided financial support for the school. Of the latter. NPS Form lO-BOO-a OMB Appmml No 1024-0018 {6-66) United States Department of the interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page 2 the most significant might be the German Volksfest Committee which provided $75. for the new school to insure that German language continued to be taught. However, the greatest income for supporting the school came from local taxes. The city allocated l/4th of one per cent for the new building. In May of 1883 construction began on the new school building located on the eastern half of the Key homestead site. The cornerstone was laid on June 9, 1883, and the building finished and occupied on January 20, 1884. This provided the first permanent home for the white public school system in Brenham. The Brenham School continued to serve the school district until sold on July 10, 1909, to N.A. Gallagher, Bishop of Galveston, for the Saint Agnes, Sacred Heart Convent. The Convent became insolvent and later (date unknown) the property was sold to Mrs. Mary D. Ross and her son-in-law, A.A. Hacker. These owners converted the building into apartments. The black public school, also authorized under the 1875 legislation, was located at Giddings and Mangrum Streets and operated as Camptown School under a separate administration. This building is no longer extant. Although there is evidence that other municipalities established public education facilities before 1875, these were short-lived and subject to great public debate. Thus, the Brenham City Council action in 1875-76 represents one of the earliest efforts initiated by citizens of a municipality to provide free public education through taxation for black and white children in the State. The erection of the Brenham School in 1883-84 on the site of the original school solidified local determination for education for white children that became the foundation for the present educational program and set up permanent educational facilities. These successful endeavors preceded such efforts by communities of comparable size in Texas. Criterion C; Architecture By the late 19th Century, Brenham was scattered with buildings using Victorian architectural styles. The greatest number of such buildings were residential properties reflecting modest Victorian features with a few sporting exuberant Eastlake and Queen Anne features. In many communities, institutional buildings of the period also used Victorian styles. However, there is no record of such being built extensively in Brenham. In fact, the Washington County courthouse constructed in 1883 (demolished in 1938) was designed in the Renaissance Revival style while the city hall built in 1904 was designed in the Richardsonian Romanesque style. Therefore, the Brenham School is the only known institutional building remaining from the period that was designed in a Victorian, specifically Italianate, style in the city. NPS Fom lO-SOO-a OMB Approvml No 7024-0078 {6-66] United States Department of the interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page 3 The school as constructed in 1883-84 reflects the general characteristics of schools built during the era: 2-story, T-plan, brick buildings with numerous large windows and simple Victorian period architectural elements. While many Victorian styles popular for residential buildings were used for schools, the Italianate style was especially well-suited for such because of its easy adaptability. One pattern book of the 1870s provides illustrations of some of these styles with one being the Italianate (see continuation sheet for Freeman, Design No. 17, Plate 61). The pattern book example of Italianate shows a building similar to the Brenham School with a low-pitched gable roof, decorative bands of brick, and grouped 2/2 windows under recessed arches. M. Russi, contractor for the building and owner of a local planing mill, may have used a comparable pattern book for the Brenham School design. This would explain the grouped use of the Italianate features such as corner quoins, hooded 2/2 windows under a recessed arch, and the particularly noteworthy, low-pitched roof. This last feature reflects a sophisticated understanding of the style that is more likely to be from a pattern book rather than the local contractor. Although many communities in the late 19th Century in Texas were setting up school districts and building schools, there are few remaining examples of this style in school buildings. NPS Fom 10-S00-* OMB Approvml No 1024-0018 [6-66) United States Department of the interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page 4 Source: Victorian School-House Architecture, A facsimile of Samuel F. Eveleth's School-house Architecture, a pattern book of 1870, published by the American Life Foundation, 1978. This is Design No. 17 and Plate No. 61. 9. Major Bibliographical References [ X ] See continuation sheet See bibliography of context statement Previous documentation on file (NPS): Primary location of additional data: [ ] preliminary determination of individual listing [ xl State historic preservation office (36 CFR 67) has been requested [ ] Other State agency [ ] previously listed in the National Register [ ] Federal agency [ ] previously determined eligible by the National Register [ j Local government [ ] designated a National Historic Landmark [ ] University [ ] recorded by Historic American Buildings [ j Other Survey # Specify repository: [ ] recorded by Historic American Engineering Texas Historical Commission, Austin, TX Record # 10. Geographical Data Acreage of property: less than one UTM References: Al/4' / 751/04Q' 334/0020 B / / / / / / Zone Easting Northing Zone Easting Northing C / / / / / / D / / / / / / Zone Easting Northing Zone Easting Northing [ ] See continuation sheet Verbal Boundary Description: y^^y^ ist addition. Block 29, Lot 4 of the City of Brenham, Texas [ ] See continuation sheet Boundary Justification: The boundary includes the nominated property and entire city lot that historically has been associated with the property. [ J See continuation sheet 11. Form Prepared By name/title: Dwayne Jones/Preservation Planner date: 1984; 1989 organization: assistance from Sally Victor) telephone: 512/463-6094 streets number: Texas Historical Commission state:TX zip code: 78701 city or town: 1511 Colorado, Austin MPS Form 11)-»0O« (MO ^/ Section number Page Brenham "••il j MPS TEXAS Washington County DATE LISTED Subctanilve Revlellr COVER 1. Becker—Hildebrandt Houae 2. Blinn College Ev.-i"^;^ 3. Blue Bell Creameries Complex %^^\-.rX\';« RfcTTl^ 4. Brenham High School 5. Brenham High School Gymnasium 6. Brenham School 3A9/fc) 7. Brenham Water Works Substantive Revleir r/9 ^ 8. Brockschmidt—Miller House 9. East Brenham KUV^J.,,... * ^./^9/9' oUu£t*iutlv8 Review 10. Holle, Edmund, House 11. Lenert, Dr. Robert, House 3/^ r/9 6 12. Matchett, Edgar, House 13. Mt. Zion Methodist Church Substantive Review j/r^9/9^ 14. Relchardt—Low House \/r^f/96^ 15. Santa Fe Railway Cc^^r^an^^^vWev^.l^"^ 16. Schlenker, Almot, House ^Uf/?cJ 17. Schlenker—Kolwes House ^/<^?/90 18. Schuerenberg, F.W., House 19. Schuerenberg, R.A., House 20. Seelhorst, W.E., House UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES EVALUATION/RETURN SHEET REQUESTED ACTION: NOMINATION PROPERTY Brenham School NAME: MULTIPLE Brenham MPS NAME: STATE & COUNTY: TEXAS, Washington DATE RECEIVED: 2/16/90 DATE OF PENDING LIST: 2/27/90 DATE OF 16TH DAY: 3/15/90 DATE OF 45TH DAY: 4/02/90 DATE OF WEEKLY LIST: REFERENCE NUMBER: 90000454 NOMINATOR: STATE REASONS FOR REVIEW: APPEAL: N DATA PROBLEM: N LANDSCAPE: N LESS THAN 50 YEARS: N OTHER: N PDIL: N PERIOD: N PROGRAM UNAPPROVED: N REQUEST: N SAMPLE: N SLR DRAFT: N NATIONAL: N COMMENT WAIVER: N t.^'-jCCCEPT RETURN REJECT ^M9kC^ DATE T—y Satlonal Register ABSTRACT/SUMMARY COMMENTS: RECOM./CRITERIA_ REVIEWER ^ DISCIPLINE DATE DOCUMENTATION see attached comments Y/N see attached SLR Y/N ciASSiFicAiic:; count resource type STATE/FEDERAL AGENCY CERTIrICATION •UNCTION historic current DESCRIPTION architectural classification materials descriptive text SIGNIFICANCE Period Areas of Significance—Check and justify below Specific dates Builder/Architect Statement of Significance (in one paragraph) summary paragraph completeness clarity applicable criteria justification of areas checked relating significance to the resource context relationship of integrity to significance justification of exception other BIBLIOGRAPHY ;EOGRAPHICAL DATA _acreage verbal boundary description _UTMs boundary justification ACCOMPANYING DOCUMENTATION/PRESENTATION sketch maps USGS maps photographs presentation OTHER COMMENTS Questions concerning this nomination may be directed to Phone Signed Date Please refer to the map in the Multiple Property Cover Sheet for this property Multiple Property Cover Sheet Reference Number: 64500628