Happy 4th of July! The Fitzgerald House 815 S. Broadway Ave. 1898 Modified Gable-L (“L”-shaped floorplan) Classical Revival styling Brick Streets Neighborhood District Although originally built in 1898 for the Henry B. Marsh family, three generations of the Fitzgerald family occupied 815 S. Broadway Ave. from 1901-2000. From 2000-2002, Robert and Rebecca Wangner restored the home. Upon completion, the Wangners worked with Kim Groff to write a book called “The Fitzgerald House,” which documented the namesake family members, their time in the home, and their experiences during the rapidly changing 20th century. The first historic photo is a 4th of July celebration at the house (year unknown). The building previously served as the office headquarters for Historic Tyler, Inc. from 2005-2015. The former home is now the office of The Stafford Davis Firm. No. 1: The Fitzgerald House Collection. 4th of July celebration (year unknown). Courtesy of Smith County Historical Society. No. 2-3: Present day. No. 4-7: Excerpts from The Fitzgerald House by Kim Groff (published 2002). (fb)

Architectural ABCs: X is for eXtinct Date: Continuous Characteristics: Historic buildings do not always stand the test of time. Many are no longer extant due to natural disaster, arson, accident, or some other act of God or man. There are numerous reasons and situations as to why some historic buildings are only known to us through the written or pictorial record—all the more reason to value the ones that are still part of the physical landscape. This post highlights two extinct buildings in Tyler: 1) Texas Fruit Palace and 2) Tyler Commercial College. These institutions embody the economic transition from agriculture to business that characterized the turn of the 20th century. Texas Fruit Palace (c. 1895 commercial version of a Free Classic Queen Anne), previously located at corner of W Front St & Vine St Heralded as the grandest, most elaborate exhibition space for “fruits, flowers, cereals and melons” with space enough to “seat over three thousand people,” the investors of the Texas Fruit Palace spared no expense attracting folks far and wide to East Texas. In 1899, TFP was abandoned and converted to Tyler Commercial College. No. 1: Smith County Historic Society (SCHS) collection. No. 2: 1898 Sanborn map of Tyler. No. 3: Present landscape. No. 4: Tyler Morning Telegraph 11/6/1966. Tyler Commercial College (c. 1904 Renaissance Revival), previously located on S College Ave Chartered in 1899, Tyler Commercial College was the largest commercial college in America. Classes were initially held at the Texas Fruit Palace until December 1903 when a fire destroyed the building. In 1904–thanks to much community support—TCC built a three-story building on the west side of S. College Ave. Courses included shorthand, transcribing, secretarial classes, cotton-classing, and railroad courses. By 1931 TCC had its own radio studio; in 1942 the army signal corps began radio communications training at TCC to support WWII efforts. Classes were held at this site until 1957; building demolished in 1963. No. 5: c. 1909 TCC students. UNT Libraries, Portal to Texas History. No. 6-7: 1902 & 1907 Sanborn maps of Tyler. No. 8: SCHS collection. No. 9: Present landscape. (fb)