Cole House
Hico, Hamilton County, Texas
Marker Inscription
This home was built by real estate investor J. Van Steenwyck in 1901-1902. It was purchased by John Baldwin Cole (1860-1924) and his wife, the former Minnie Victoria Grace, in 1907. A druggist, Cole operated the Cole and Grace Drugstore in partnership with his father-in-law, Dr. J. W. Grace. The two-story wooden home features an offset gable front, one-story wraparound porch with a Chippendale screen, and a steep-pitch hipped roof. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1988
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Built in 1901-1902 by a real estate investor, this two-story frame house in the small town of Hico soon belonged to druggist John Baldwin Cole and his wife Minnie. Cole ran the Cole and Grace Drugstore alongside his father-in-law, Dr. J. W. Grace, a common family-business pairing in turn-of-the-century Texas towns. Its offset gable, wraparound porch with Chippendale screen, and steep hipped roof reflect the comfortable domestic architecture of a prospering merchant class.
Why it matters
Homes like this trace the rise of the local professional and merchant families who anchored small Texas towns as they matured in the early twentieth century.
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Related people
- · John Baldwin Cole
- · Minnie Victoria Grace
- · J. W. Grace
Themes & tags
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