Welcome to Historic Houston Street

Welcome to Historic Houston Street. . This major thoroughfare contains many examples of San Antonio's spectacular commercial architecture of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Houston Street began as El Paseo or Paseo Hondo, an unpaved lane lined with small private homes, lumber yards, corrals, and the site of a U.S. military headquarters. As San Antonio developed into the largest city in Texas by 1900, Houston Street was transformed into the city's major business corridor. In the period roughly between 1880 and World War II, Houston Street experienced an unprecedented building boom which produced some of San Antonio's most beautiful commercial structures. , Many of these buildings are today designated local historic landmarks and listed in the National Register of Historic Places. Much of downtown Houston Street is also part of the Alamo Plaza and Main and Military Plaza National Register and Local Historic Districts., As you walk down this historic street you will encounter a series of eight kiosks between N. Alamo and N. Santa Rosa Streets. These kiosks highlight the history and architecture of many of the significant structures on Houston Street. The kiosks are former public telephone stands that have been adaptively reused by the City of San Antonio in partnership with the U.S. General Services Administration Good Neighbor Program. There are informative panels on both sides of each kiosk and each panel will identify nearby historic points of interest. The approximate distance from this first kiosk to the eighth kiosk is 0.7 mile., Behind you at the corner of E. Houston and N. Alamo Streets is the former U.S. Post Office and Federal Courthouse. Built in the imposing Beaux Arts style in 1937 by San Antonio architect Ralph Cameron with Paul Philippe Cret, this building replaced an earlier post office constructed on the site in 1890. The building now serves as the Hipolito F. Garcia Federal Building and U.S. Courthouse under the U.S. General Services Administration. One of the most exciting features of the building's ornate interior is a spectacular sixteen-panel fresco mural in the southern vestibule depicting "San Antonio's Importance in Texas History The mural was commissioned by the Treasury Department's Section of Fine Arts in 1937 as part of a nationwide federal mural program. The painter, Howard Cook, spent more than two years on the project, and it was the largest mural commissioned for a Texas post office. The mural was restored in 1999. Step inside the building to view this piece of national and local history. , To learn more about San Antonio's history go to www.visitsanantonio.com/history, Captions , U.S. Post Office and Federal Courthouse in 1937 , Courtesy of the Institute of the Texan Cultures, The University of Texas at San Antonio , Panel 2 , Welcome to Historic Houston Street , Originally the unpaved El Paseo or Paseo Hondo, Houston Street had developed into San Antonio's premier retail and theater district by the early 20th century. Many spectacular commercial buildings from this era have been preserved. Follow the eight kiosks between Alamo Plaza and N. Santa Rosa Street to learn about the history and architecture of this historic corridor., Ahead of you past the former U.S. Post Office and Federal Courthouse is the Gothic Revival style Medical Arts Building. Designed in 1926 by San Antonio architect Ralph Cameron, it was the first medical office building in the city. The building features highly decorative detailing on the upper stories. Behind you on your left is the Albert Maverick Building. Constructed ca. 1882, it is the oldest building on Houston Street. The two-story stone structure is located on part of the Maverick family's original homestead. It reflects the type of 19th century buildings once lining Houston Street., Ahead on your left at the corner of N. Alamo Street is the eight-story Gibbs Building. It was completed in 1912 on ground that was originally contained within the Alamo compound. Cannons from the compound were uncovered during construction of the Gibbs Building basement. Samuel Maverick, one of the signers of the Texas Declaration of Independence, constructed a homestead here about 1850. The initial "G" for Gibbs is engraved on the decorative elements along the Houston Street facade and above the roofline cornice along N. Alamo Street. , On your right at the corner of Alamo Plaza is the three-story Woolworth Building constructed in 1921. The first Woolworth "five and dime" store opened in 1879 in Pennsylvania. The Woolworth Building on Houston Street was advertised as the oldest Woolworth store in Texas. The Woolworth name is still engraved in granite above the door at the west corner of the building. The Woolworth Building replaced the former Maverick Bank Building designed in the 1880s on this site by noted San Antonio architect Alfred Giles. The elaborate old Maverick Bank Building, at five-stories in height, was San Antonio's tallest building at the time of construction., To learn more about San Antonio's history go to www.visitsanantonio.com/history, Captions , Old Maverick Bank Building ca. 1910 formerly on the site of the Woolworth Building , Courtesy of the Institute of Texan Cultures, The University of Texas at San Antonio