TEHUACANA, TEXAS — Preservation Texas has announced that it has signed a contract to purchase historic Texas Hall in Tehuacana, a monumental four-story limestone building that is one of the most endangered historic landmarks in the state and the birthplace of Trinity University.
The purchase includes the 10-acre “College Hill” campus surrounding Texas Hall and several other historic structures, currently owned by the nonprofit Trinity Institute. Over the next decade, Preservation Texas plans to restore Texas Hall and transform this campus into the Preservation Texas Institute, a statewide center for preservation education, training, research, and engagement.
“This project will be a major, multi-year undertaking," said Evan Thompson, executive director of Preservation Texas. "The severely deteriorated Texas Hall, a four-story 20,500 square-foot limestone structure in need of emergency stabilization, is larger than many county courthouses, and will require a major statewide fundraising effort to bring back to life."
The work will be conducted in phases, with the exterior restoration of Louisiana Hall, a three story dormitory building constructed circa 1912, to be the first project completed while engineering assessments are undertaken on Texas Hall. Generous support toward acquisition and this initial phase has been provided by the Still Water Foundation and by Jack Taylor and Peter Maxson. Other campus buildings, including an original 1933 gymnasium, 1940s P.O.W. barracks, and a craftsman bungalow also require both interior and exterior stabilization and repair.
“This will be our flagship project as we prepare for the 2036 Texas Bicentennial,” Thompson added. “Rehabilitating Texas Hall and revitalizing this historic campus will create a living laboratory for preservation, benefiting communities across the state.”
Planning for the Preservation Texas Institute is being funded in part by the Summerlee Foundation and the Texas Historical Foundation. The Institute will host programs ranging from hands-on building trades training to seminars, workshops, and residencies for historians, architects, and preservation professionals and advocates.
Campus facilities will provide space for lodging, dining, classrooms, workshops, exhibition galleries, a Texana library, a two-story auditorium, and a gymnasium. The Institute will also benefit from its proximity to Bassett Farms, a 2,400-acre farm and ranch owned by Preservation Texas, located thirty miles south, which will serve as a field school for preservation, conservation, and archaeological programs.
"Once restored, Texas Hall and the Institute's campus will once again serve as a symbol of learning as well as preservation leadership," said Willis Winters, board president of Preservation Texas. "The Institute will be founded on the belief that the best use of a historic building is the purpose for which it was built. Here in Tehuacana, it's education, which is central to our organizational mission."
Visit SaveTexasHall.org to explore the site’s history, learn more about Preservation Texas’ vision for the Institute, find out how you can get involved, and make a tax-deductible donation toward this project.
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