Rice-Eidson Building

Rice-Eidson Building. Circa 1908. , Built in 1908, the Rice-Eidson Building was originally designed to house the law offices of Arthur R. Eidson and his father, J.A. Eidson, two very successful attorneys. J.A. Eidson served as Associate Justice of the Third Court of Civil Appeals in Austin. Arthur R. Eidson was elected State Democratic Party Chairman in the 1920's during the controversial governorships of both Pa and Ma Ferguson. Unfortunately, J.A. Eidson died just before the building was built., Prior to construction of the Rice-Eidson Building, the Eidson and Rice families had a long history of ownership of the southside of the Hamilton County Courthouse square. In 1857, James Monroe Rice opened the first store in Hamilton just east of this building. Upon his death in 1872, his wife, Mrs. C.E. Rice, inherited a portion of the property. Their daughter, also named C.E. Rice, married J.A. Eidson and was Arthur R. Eidson's mother. After this building was constructed in 1908, Mrs. C.E. Rice Eidson deeded the property to her son., The building is typical for construction of its time, using dressed native limestone for the exterior walls. The upstairs was constructed for law offices and the downstairs for retail space. The upstairs remained unused after the Eidsons ceased practicing law, but during the ensuing years, a variety of retail ventures have occupied the downstairs. In 2002, Ray and Frances Ramsey bought the property, and carefully restored the entire building for use as an art museum. They reopened the upstairs and discovered many books and papers which were left since the Eidsons occupied it in the early 1900's.