The Galveston Historical Foundation is a

historical society A historical society is non-profit organization dedicated to collecting, preserving, interpreting, and promoting the history of a particular place, group of people, or topic. They play a crucial role in promoting historical awareness and understan ...

based in

Galveston, Texas Galveston ( ) is a Gulf Coast of the United States, coastal resort town, resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island (Texas), Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a pop ...

History

The organization was formed in 1871 as the Galveston Historical Society by a group of 12 men who wanted to preserve the written documents and printed items of the city and region. The group oversaw a collection that was stored at the

Rosenberg Library Rosenberg Library, a public library located at 2310 Sealy Street in Galveston, Texas, United States, is the oldest continuously operating library in Texas. It serves as headquarters of the Galveston County Library System, and its librarian is a ...

beginning in 1906, becoming library property in 1931. The historical society was revived in 1942, when they began working on a booklet of Galveston's historic houses, which was published in 1951. A few years after that, the historic Samuel May Williams House was threatened with demolition, which prompted the group to buy it. They formed the Galveston Historical Foundation, which purchased and restored the house, and later merged with the society in 1961. With help from the

Moody Foundation The Moody Foundation is a charitable foundation incorporated in Texas and based in the island city of Galveston. It was chartered in 1942 by William Lewis Moody Jr. and his wife Libbie Rice Shearn Moody ''"to benefit, in perpetuity, present and ...

and others, the

Historic American Buildings Survey The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star. Computer scientists and Mathematici ...

hired John C. Garner to begin a survey of the island's structures in 1966. Garner and his team documented the city's eastern third and identified a large number of significant structures still standing that he considered worth preserving. Following that, the society launched a grassroots campaign to promote local history and increase support for area preservation. After the completion of the historic survey and the signing of the

National Historic Preservation Act The National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA, , ) is legislation intended to preserve historic and archaeological sites in the United States of America. The act created the National Register of Historic Places, the list of National Historic Landm ...

, the Galveston Historical Foundation took on the role of a coordinator for historic preservation in Galveston. After the sudden announcement that

Ashton Villa Ashton Villa is a fully restored, historic home located on the corner of 24th and Broadway in Galveston, Texas, United States. Constructed in 1859, it was one of the first brick structures in Texas built by slaves. History On January 7, 1859, ...

was to be sold or demolished in 1968, the foundation rallied to raise support for purchasing it from the

Shriners Shriners International, formally known as the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (AAONMS), is an American Masonic body, Masonic society. Founded in 1872 in New York City, it is headquartered in Tampa, Florida, and has over ...

and preserve the building. After a contentious bidding process, the foundation convinced the city of Galveston to institute zoning requirements that protected the structure until the two sides could reach a deal to sell the structure to the historical foundation in 1971. Strand002

The foundation developed a historic district plan, which would eventually create the East End Historic District and the

Strand Historic District The Strand Historic District, also known as the Strand District, in downtown Galveston, Texas (USA), is a National Historic Landmark District of mainly Victorian era buildings that now house restaurants, antique stores, and curio shops. The are ...

in the early 1970s. Around the same time, the group gained full ownership of the Strand's Hendley Building, which was later converted into the foundation's offices. Peter Brink was named the group's first executive director in 1973 and oversaw multiple projects such as Bicentennial commemoration events, Strand revitalization work, and the foundation of

Dickens on the Strand Dickens on the Strand is an annual Christmas festival organized by the Galveston Historical Foundation in Galveston, Texas occurring the first weekend in December. Established in 1974 and set against the historical backdrop of Galveston's Strand, ...

. This event, which was held for the first time in 1974, was a

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literatur ...

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

-themed day with games, poetry readings, and music. Starting in the mid-1970s the foundation had been working to purchase and restore the 1877 sailing ship '' Elissa'', which had sailed to Galveston twice in the 1880s and was considered representative of the vessels that had frequented the city's port in the past. As restoration progressed, it became clear that the scope of work required was significantly more extensive than had been believed earlier. After being towed to Galveston in 1979, the ship underwent further repairs before opening to the public in 1982. Another event that began around that time was the foundation's Historic Homes Tour, which was first held in 1975 and grew in scope over the following years. By 1984 the tour had grown to a two-weekend event, and was considered one of the foundation's top fundraisers. Additionally, the tours helped to highlight Galveston's neighborhoods and the significant architectural features within them. The foundation offered resources such as a free paint program and recommendations for city preservation loans to help encourage homeowners to preserve and protect their own buildings and neighborhood character. These residential programs included things like a salvage warehouse and restoration demonstration house. After years of declining visitation, the Samuel May Williams House was closed as a museum in 2007, later to be sold as a private residence. Also in 2007, the Historical Foundation finalized an agreement to take over stewardship of

Bishop's Palace A bishop's palace is a form of ecclesiastical architecture constituting the official residence of a bishop.The term was not used in the British Isles until the Church of England was restructured following the Norman Conquest of 1066 AD. However, th ...

from the

Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, prov ...

. The foundation purchased the mansion from the Archdiocese in 2013 and launched an extensive restoration project to improve the building's roof and interiors.

References

Citations

{{Southern U.S. historical societies Organizations established in 1871 Historical societies in Texas Galveston, Texas History of Texas