HistoricSiteMarkers
Reconstruction & Gilded Age

Claiborne House

Jefferson, Marion County, Texas

Marker Inscription

Volney H. Claiborne, a Civil War veteran from Virginia, married Lucy A. Perry on December 15, 1864. In 1875, Volney built this house in the late Greek Revival style. Although the style is uncommon in Texas, the house closely resembles the nearby house of Lucy’s father, William Perry. The one and a half story house has a small front porch with a flat roof and two square columns. The main roof is pitched and there are larger porches on the north and south sides of the house with sloped roofs and square columns. The couple had eight children while living in the house. Volney died in 1897 and the property went to their descendants. RECORDED TEXAS HISTORIC LANDMARK – 2016

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

Volney H. Claiborne, a Virginian who had served in the Civil War, married Lucy Perry in 1864 and in 1875 built this one-and-a-half-story house in the late Greek Revival style, then already uncommon in Texas. Its design closely echoed the nearby home of Lucy's father, William Perry, and the couple raised eight children within its walls before Volney's death in 1897 left the property to their descendants.

Why it matters

The Claiborne House preserves a fading architectural taste in the riverport town of Jefferson, reflecting the Southern families who rebuilt their lives in Texas after the Civil War.

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Related people

  • · Volney H. Claiborne
  • · Lucy A. Perry

Themes & tags

Nearby & related markers

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Atkins House

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