Silk Stocking

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My plans this morning included a slow drive through the entirety of Galveston’s Silk Stocking Historic District. I wanted to see all of the beautiful old homes and mansions. Regretfully, a self-guided tour was one I had not yet - In all my days on the island - put on my agenda.

Before I headed out, I did a bit of homework, searching online to get the facts about the district - specifically, its exact location and boundaries. Silk Stocking, I learned, is situated south of Broadway Boulevard and bounded by 25th and 23rd streets, from Avenue K to Avenue P. It is recognized as one of the most intact neighborhoods of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The district’s name refers to the wealth of its early residents; all were considered prosperous; all could easily afford to purchase silk stockings - unlike many others on the island at that time.

Silk Stocking was originally developed in the 1870s. It featured a mix of single-family houses, a small corner store, large vacant blocks and industrial sites. Until the 1890s, the core of the Silk Stocking District was occupied by the Texas Cotton Press. After the Texas Press went bankrupt and was demolished, the area was subdivided, and the lots sold at auction in 1898.

Many buildings here survived the Great Storm of 1900 and subsequent grade raising, when The Seawall was built and sand was pumped in to raise the level of the land beneath it.

The homes in this 14-block section of historic Galveston include some of the island’s finest examples of Queen Anne architecture. The entire area was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.

Today, 25th Street (also called Rosenberg Street) is the main link between the historic Downtown/Strand/Postoffice/Seaport area and The Seawall, with a trolley line connecting them.

Nowadays, the homes for sale in Galveston’s Silk Stocking District range in size from modest to massive, with the average featuring at least 2,000 square feet. Prices range from the $150,000s to the $750,000s.

Lucas Apartments

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In 1887, Thomas Lucas, a bricklayer from Nottingham, England, designed and constructed a row of six attached houses on the corner of Broadway Boulevard and 6th street. Sadly, these houses - known as Lucas Row - were destroyed in the Great Storm of 1900. The destruction of such a substantial structure was so significant, the City of Galveston held a remembrance ceremony on the one-year anniversary of the storm at the site of Lucas Row.

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After the storm, Lucas picked up the bricks from the rubble and moved them to Broadway and 14th street, where his own modest wood-frame home had miraculously survived.

Between 1901 and 1906, Lucas built the East Building of what is now known as the Lucas Apartments, recognized as the first brick apartment building in Texas.

When the East Building was finished, Lucas moved his frame house to another lot on Broadway (since torn down) and began construction on the West Building. Between 1907 and 1908, he rapidly completed the West Building and connected the two structures with an open breezeway.  

Lucas worked without plans and, if you look closely, you can see he was not consistent in his work. Many of the windows have different treatments in the surrounding brick trim. The dimensions and elevations of the buildings are also slightly different.

The Galveston Historical Foundation views the Lucas Apartments as one of the most visible and important properties in the Victorian-era East End Historic District as it is the only structure that suggests the Art Nouveau style. This is clearly evident in the facade of the building which is decorated with large shell and coral patterned cast concrete. The structure was also constructed with load-bearing brick with large beams running the length of the building. This was a construction technique usually reserved for larger commercial buildings.

The Lucas Apartments, built by a pioneer artisan of Galveston, is a remarkable example of individual enterprise. Today, it is privately owned and operated as Casa Familia, a luxury rental option for families and groups.

It still stands at an important location on Broadway Boulevard - across from Bishop’s Palace and the Sacred Heart Church.