Texas Governor's Mansion
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| Governor's Mansion | |
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| U.S. National Register of Historic Places | |
| U.S. National Historic Landmark | |
 The Texas Governor's Mansion in 2006.
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| Location: | 1010 Colorado St., Austin, Texas, USA |
| Coordinates: | 30°16′21.72″N 97°44′34.79″W / 30.2727°N 97.7429972°W |
| Built/Founded: | 1855 |
| Architect: | Abner Cook |
| Architectural style(s): | Greek Revival |
| Governing body: | State of Texas, Office of the Governor |
| Added to NRHP: | August 25, 1970[1] |
| Designated NHL: | December 2, 1974[2] |
| NRHP Reference#: | 70000896 |
The Texas Governor's Mansion is a historic home for the Governor of Texas in downtown Austin, Texas. It was built in 1854, designed by prominent architect Abner Cook, and has been the home of every governor since 1856.
On June 8, 2008, while midway through a major renovation, the mansion was heavily damaged by a fire believed to be arson.[3]
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[edit] History
The mansion is the oldest continuously inhabited house in Texas and fourth oldest governor's mansion in the United States that has been continuously occupied by a chief executive. The mansion was the first-designated Texas historic landmark, in 1962.[4] It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1970, and further was declared a U.S. National Historic Landmark in 1974.[2][4]
[edit] Original Architecture
Designed by Abner Cook in a Greek Revival style, the building occupies the center of a block and is surrounded by trees and gardens. The original mansion was 6,000 square feet (560 m2). Remodeling in 1914 increased the size of the mansion to 8,920 square feet (829 m2). The original mansion had 11 rooms but no bathrooms. The remodeling brought the room count to 25 rooms and 7 bathrooms.
[edit] 2008 fire
The mansion was partially destroyed by a four-alarm fire in the early morning of June 8, 2008. Current Texas Governor Rick Perry and First Lady Anita Perry were in Europe at the time of the fire. They had moved out in October 2007 for a $10 million remodeling project that began in January 2008 to refurbish and restore the mansion to its original appearance. The remodeling was to include a fire suppression system.[5] "State Fire Marshal Paul Maldonado said Sunday that investigators have evidence that an arsonist targeted the 152-year-old building. They have made no arrests, and don’t have a suspect. An official close to the investigation said agents determined the fire was a criminal act after reviewing footage from security cameras."[6]
[edit] Restoration
In May 2009, $22 million was allocated to the restoration the Governor's Mansion, $11 million of which came from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. An additional $3.4 million has been raised through private fund raising. [7]
[edit] Notes
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2008-04-15. http://www.nr.nps.gov/.
- ^ a b "Governor's Mansion (Austin)". National Historic Landmark summary listing. National Park Service. http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl/detail.cfm?ResourceId=1049&ResourceType=Building. Retrieved 2008-06-08.
- ^ Sullivan, John (2008-06-08). "Fire Sweeps Through Texas Governor’s Mansion". The New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/08/us/08cnd-texas.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin. Retrieved 2008-06-08.
- ^ a b Chambers, Allen (August 14, 1974), National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination: The Governor's MansionPDF (32 KB), National Park Service and Accompanying three photos, exterior and interior, from 1966 and 1975PDF (32 KB)
- ^ "Governor's Mansion burns; arson possible". Austin News KXAN.com. 2008-06-08. http://www.kxan.com/global/story.asp?s=8447664. Retrieved 2008-06-08.
- ^ Hoppe, Christy, and Emily Ramshaw (2008-06-08). "Fire marshal says Texas Governor's Mansion blaze appears deliberate". Dallas Morning News. http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/060808dntexmansion.1049fdc5.html. Retrieved 2008-06-08.
- ^ http://www.statesman.com/news/content/news/stories/local/05/22/0522mansion.html
[edit] References
- "The Texas Governor's Mansion," The Magazine Antiques, July 2006.
[edit] External links
- Governor's Mansion from the Handbook of Texas Online
- Friends of the Texas Governor's Mansion - includes history, photos, visiting information
- Governor's Mansion, 1010 Colorado Street, Austin, Travis County, TX: 21 photos, 11 drawings, 3 data pages and supplemental material, at Historic American Building Survey
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