Alamo Hardwoods Blog

Noble Inns

The Jackson House on Madison Street, King William Historic District

Don Noble and his family go back in San Antonio and Texas, way way back. www.nobleinns.com  We had worked with Don on the restoration of the Jackson House on Madison Street in the King William District south of downtown many years ago. (All of my photos of the project were old fashioned prints, if that tells you how long ago it was). He took the project very personally and wanted to make sure that the design and materials were not only appropriate for the house and its era, but also of the best quality. The special Victorian base boards and plinth blocks and rosettes were all custom milled and hand turned to match those that were in the house originally. Of note, the two story rear addition matched brick color and not much else. The original front to the Jackson House used a red colored mortar to highlight the buff brick used. When the back part of the house was added, the sizes of the moldings were duplicated, but not the designs. The plinths blocks and rosettes were also not matched. The red mortar was dropped, as well. I find it curious how little attention was sometimes paid to historical detail when it would not have been much trouble to get a good match.





 

Jackson House Today

Hallway in the Jackson House

Stairwell in the Jackson House

Oge House

Don has also added the Oge House to his collection of Historic Bed and Breakfasts. This house added a second story many years ago, and the windows upstairs are slightly different than those downstairs. The Carriage house shown in the photos below has actually been moved to another LOCATION (next blog post, Yturri-Edmunds Historic Site).

It's amazing, in Historic Preservation month, how much properties have changed and grown, or shrunk, or even moved over the years. One house that rolled by our front door recently was being moved, for the SECOND time! It seems sometimes that people think that "preservation" means that a property should be frozen in time, placed under glass if you will.

Don and his family live in the neighborhood, too. I would say that they definitely put their money where their mouth is.
I think that they realize that things change, but that historic homes can still house many people comfortably, even if only for a few days. I would suggest to any visitor the city that this type of experience would be a much better way to experience the city than some generic "Motel 8 1/2" next to a freeway. I also think that I will recommend that anyone thinking of buying a historic, or just older home spend a weekend in one of his houses to see just how much "charm" and "character" they can really stand.

Oge Entrance Door

Oge Carriage House

Oge Carriage House

Posted by JR on 16th May, 2012 | Comments | Trackbacks | Permalink
Tags: Bed and Breakfast, King William Area, Historic House Restoration

Villa Finale, Revisited

Villa Finale, King William District National Trust for Historic Preservation

I thought that my first blog post from last year was worth re-writing with more and better (much larger) pictures.

Walter Mathis fell in love with this neighborhood and it's amazing houses as I was born.

I can imagine that people told him he was insane to move to this area that had barely escaped the bulldozers of the freeway construction.  One of our other clients' house did not escape that fate. She decamped to Terrell Hills and many decades later had her old porch refashioned into flooring for a dining room! (that was the first time I had seen an aromatic cedar porch!)

It took vision, cheap prices, and more than a small amount of stubbornness to make his neighborhood civilized again. He personally bought, sold and financed 14 of the houses in the King William Historic District. 

He was always very gracious when showing his house, allowing churches to use it for tours for fundraising. He understood that we pass through places like this and that they'll be there long after we're gone.

Now, it's available for tours www.villafinale.org so consider making a day of the neighborhood. The Steves House is also open for tours. Think about lunch at the Guenther House museum and Pioneer Flour Mill restaurant. Or go all the way and plan to stay at one of the neighborhood historic Bed and Breakfasts, like the houses of the Noble Inns.  (but that's another blog day)

Main Hallway Pediments

Victorian Base Board Molding and Corner Block Detail

Porch Board Replacement

Villa Finale Addition Porch Ceiling Unusual Alternating Beaded Detail

Posted by JR on 7th May, 2012 | Comments | Trackbacks | Permalink
Tags: Reproduction Millwork, King William Historic Neighborhood District, Walter Mathis, Villa Finale House Museum

Mid Century Mod

Entry

So almost 20 years ago I moved into this small house in the Northwoods area of San Antonio.  It was a little (alot) neglected and as the project progressed, I found that elements of Japanese inspiration worked better than any other "style" for the furnishings. Screens, etc. I came across a book, "Japanese Homes and their Surroundings" by Edward S. Morse. He had many sketches as well as text. the more I read,the more I realized this little tract house and his buddies were Japanese farmhouse inspired for the spaces and construction.  The neighborhood resembles a Japanese fishing village.

Carport

Framing diagram

Post base detail

Post base drawing

The quality and thoughtfulness lavished on such a small house really affected me over the years as the sensitivity to environment and solar orientation and breezes became apparent. Even the original tree plantings for the entire neighborhood were done to maximize summer shade in the right spots but be deciduous to allow winter sun in. And 4 foot eaves on a 1 story house? Unheard of. But then the summer sun never touches the walls. And the placement of carport and front "cutout" to maximize summer shading? The window openings placed and sized to utilize the prevailing summer breeze with the Venturi effect for good measure?

The final piece to the puzzle came when a gentleman called form Terrell Hills requesting help with his insurance company. He had purchased a house from the widow of the architect and owner, Reginald Roberts.The insurance company said that he had overpaid for the property and didn't want to insure it for that price. The more we spoke on the phone the more the pieces of the puzzle came into place.  Reginald was stationed in Japan after World War II.  My neighborhood was built by Quincy Lee. Reginald had designed a house for Quincy himself. The coincidences were too many.

Reginald Roberts Residence

Reginald Robert's living room, large southern openings

Entering the Roberts residence through the sliding glass front door (how radical was THAT in 1955!?) the suspicions were confirmed. Every detail in my house that redwood was used for was identical in Reginald's personal house in walnut. The kitchen cabinets were upgraded from birch to walnut. (and apparently inspired by the Neutra/Kaufmann House in Palm Springs) A funky canted fluorescent (!) light box that is redwood in my house is there, but in walnut.  I questioned my grandfather about Mr. Roberts and he remembered him sorting through our walnut lumber in the yard for three days in the 1950's.  Well, there it was as his shelves.

Reginald apparently liked sliding glass doors on the Southern sides of houses to catch the prevailing summer breeze. My house had a sliding door and patio on the front (?) of the house. The opposite side of the street the houses reverse to make sure window openings are set just right for the breeze.  Carports are always! on the west side for maximum shading.

Birch Plywood cabinets in author's house

Author's living, showing signature canted light box Redwood, painted

Apartment Complex, Northwoods, Demoloshed 2011

Having spent so much time with Reginald, even never having met him, I feel like I can tell if he's been someplace. The scale, the details. He really wanted every space to be enjoyable and of good quality, regardless of the budget or scale of the project.  Many of the world's famous architects found themselves intrigued by the idea of producing good, honest design but on a mass, affordable scale. True humanitarianism.  My neighborhood reflects that with dozens of owners like myself who would like larger homes, but really love these small houses too much to want to leave them.

Edward Morse wrote in his book:
"It is a very serious fact that now-a-days no one in our country is acquiring faithfully the carpenter's trade.  Much of this lamentable condition of things is no doubt due to the fact that machine work has supplanted the hand work of former times. Doors, blinds, sashes  moldings are now turned out by the cord and mile, and all done in such greedy haste, and with the greenest of lumber, that if it does not tumble to pieces in transportation it is sure to do so very soon after entering into the home structure. Nevertheless, the miserable truth yet remains that any man who has nailed up a few boxes, or stood in front of a circular saw for a few months, feels competent to exercise all of the duties of that most honorable craft, -the building of a  house."

The publication date for his book is 85,....1885!

Oak Hills, LA Views in SA

People may not realize that what they do can far outlive them. As I entered this house with an incredible view, I noticed the sliding glass door with windows on each side. I looked around a bit and asked the carpenter, "Was there a light box with an angle over here?"
He replied," No, it was on this wall, I took it down yesterday."
That's my boy, Reg.

Posted by JR on 13th April, 2012 | Comments | Trackbacks | Permalink
Tags: Japan inspiration, Reginald Roberts, mid century mod

Spring is Here! and so is a new Taste Issue!

Taste Magazine, Spring

It's Spring! The weather is warming up, the skies are clear...and all of the excuses you had for putting off those outdoor projects just blew away with the breeze!  (I'm right there with you. I take great advantage of the note on the paint can that says "will not dry under 50 degrees")

Well, we can help with all of your projects. Whether you have a new, modern house or a historic property, we can mill any wood to any profile you can imagine. Here we see the new Schertz Public Library, covered in Cypress siding.  We worked closely with the architects, Kell Munoz, providing custom samples to develop a design that would convey tradition and modernity all at once. Take a swing by and see their super modern new building! I'm sure the town of Schertz is extra proud of their new facility (and maybe you'll get an idea or two for your own house!)

Posted by JR on 27th March, 2012 | Comments (1) | Trackbacks | Permalink
Tags: taste magazine, historic reproduction wood siding

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