Frederick William Beissner House
Galveston, Galveston County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Designed by Galveston architect William H. Roystone for local real estate agent Frederick William Beissner (1854-1905) and his wife Mary, this Victorian-era home was built in 1888. Its elaborate Eastlake details include turned posts, jigsawn porch balustrades, recurring floral motifs, corbelled chimney, cross-gabled roof capped by a widow's walk, and varying patterns of imbricated shingles. The home remained in the Beissner family until 1913. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1990
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Built in 1888 for Galveston real estate agent Frederick William Beissner and his wife Mary, this Victorian home was designed by local architect William H. Roystone in the elaborate Eastlake manner. Its turned posts, jigsawn balustrades, floral motifs, corbelled chimney, and imbricated shingles crowned by a widow's walk show the ornamental exuberance of Galveston's Gilded Age prosperity. The house stayed in the Beissner family until 1913.
Why it matters
The home is a fine survivor of the architecture that flourished when Galveston was one of the wealthiest and busiest ports in the country, before the 1900 hurricane changed the island's fortunes.
Own a business near here? Add it to the map.
Related people
- · Frederick William Beissner
- · William H. Roystone
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
A. Wilkins Miller Cottage
Galveston, TX
Built in 1895 for lumber magnate A. Wilkins Miller, this Victorian cottage reflects the Gilded Age fortunes made in Texas timber. As president of one of the state's largest lumber companies, Miller drove the growth of the southeast Texas timber industry and the rail lines that carried its product. The home's sawn brackets, stained glass, and bay windows mark the era's decorative taste.
Clarke-Jockusch Home
Galveston, TX
This grand Victorian home was raised in 1895 by shipping figure Captain Charles Clarke during Galveston's heyday as a great Gulf port. Its unusual double brick walls let it withstand the catastrophic 1900 hurricane and later storms, and neighbors sheltered inside it many times. In 1928 it passed to grain exporter Julius Jockusch, who served as a consul abroad.
Trube House
Galveston, TX
Built in 1890 for John Clement Trube, a young immigrant from Kiel, Denmark, this whimsical home was styled after a Danish castle by architect Alfred Muller. Its solid brick walls, finished in Belgian cement, have weathered generation after generation of Gulf hurricanes on Galveston Island. Remarkably, the house has remained in the Trube family that first raised nine children within its towered rooms.
The Maas House
Galveston, TX
Built in 1886 of cypress with ornate woodwork, this house sheltered the large family of Maxwell and Sarah Davis Maas and their nine children. Galveston-born Maas, a nephew of the composer Offenbach, worked as a merchant and later served as county tax collector before selling the home in 1911. It was restored in 1972.