Florian House

Florian House. . Samuel McAllister bought land near his store in 1854, and contracted with Franklin D. Faville for construction of this house at a cost of $660. In 1855, Faville acquired the house from McAllister in satisfaction of an unpaid debt. Erasmus A. Florian, a Polish exile who established an insurance company in San Antonio, bought the house in 1858, and his family lived here until 1884. The two-story addition was built by saloonkeeper John Bosshardt, who bought the house in 1882. His widow lived here until 1907. The house was later rented to tenants including S.W. Kammer, a tailor, and G.L. Southern, a photographer., The original structure and rear addition reflect the dramatic change in building styles from the pre-Civil War period to the Victorian period. The classically inspired porch on the limestone house has simple square columns. Small, double-hung windows in a six-over-six pattern were typical of the earlier period. The rear brick addition has larger four-over-four windows and a more fanciful porch reflecting the Victorian period's design freedom and use of factory-produced materials.