FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 24, 2007
CONTACT: Molly Dannenmaier
Director of Marketing and Public Relations,
409-765-7834

Galveston Historical Foundation’s Director of Preservation Services, Brian Davis, to Give Talk on “Lost Galveston” this Saturday

Galveston Historical Foundation's Fall 2007 Demonstration and Presentation Series continues this Saturday with a talk on "Lost Galveston". Brian Davis, GHF's Director of Preservation Services, will show photos from the Preservation Resource Center's collection of Galveston buildings that no longer exist, along with photos of what that property looks like today. The talk will be held on the second floor of the Sealy Garage (GHF Salvage Warehouse) at 908 23rd Street, and begin at 9 a.m. Seating is limited, so reservations are strongly suggested: contact Matt Farragher at 409.765.7834. The cost is $10 for GHF members and $12 for non-members.

Residence of William R. Johnson - 2528 Broadway - Built in 1876 - Demolished in 1959 - Photo from The Artwork of Galveston – Courtesy of the Joe Tramonte Family.

2528 Broadway today.

The talk will cover a full range of buildings, from the homes and businesses of Galveston leaders to the smaller houses of Galveston's working class and immigrants to the locations where both groups met for socializing and shopping. This talk showcases the talent of the craftsmen who built these structures and the lives that played out within their walls, now all lost forever.

Davis says he realizes that not every battle can be won to protect the buildings that we are fortunate to live among and in, here on Galveston Island. So many elements are working against Galveston buildings, says Davis--including sun, salt, storms, GHfires and unsympathetic development. Experiencing a modern building in the middle of a row of historic buildings can be a shock to the senses, he says. Most Galvestonians have had this happen, whether driving past a ranch-style house tucked in the East End or seeing a vacant lot in one of the historic districts. In some cases, the building that it replaced may have been destroyed by other means, other than to just build something new. Many buildings along the 21st and 23rd Street corridors were heavily damaged or destroyed by tornadoes during Hurricane Carla in 1961. There have been many close calls over the years as well. Ashton Villa, the Samuel May Williams House and the Hendley Building would all be gone today had it not been for the determination of GHF volunteers and staff members.

Saturday’s lecture on “Lost Galveston” was designed to show some of those lost battles, and to give a sense of why all the staff of GHF work so hard and with such passion. Galveston has five historic districts that the City of Galveston's Landmark Commission governs. This accounts for a very small portion of the historic resources that Galveston has to offer. The San Jacinto Neighborhood Association is working hard to form the City's first Neighborhood Conservation District, and GHF is supporting them in this effort. By working together, we can encourage new growth that works in tandem with our historic neighborhoods and highlights Galveston's unique character.

GHF will be hosting two additional talks in the Saturday series this fall.

On Saturday, November 3, Denise Alexander, Program Officer for the Southwest Region of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, will discuss the Rosenwald Schools, and the National Trust's initiative to save this vanishing part of the South's history. Julius Rosenwald, president of Sears Roebuck & Co., saw the need for proper schoolhouses for African American children, and established a fund that built thousands of schools from Maryland to Texas.

The final talk in the Fall 2007 series will be on Saturday, November 10, by Shirley Wetzel. In her talk, "Nottingham: A 19th-Century Factory Town on Galveston's West End", she will discuss the findings of Rice University's archaeological excavations at the site of a lace factory that was modeled after ones in Nottingham, England. The town was laid out in the early 1890's, but did not survive financial and tropical storms.

Proceeds from the series go towards increasing the library material at GHF's Preservation Resource Center.