Harris Building
Granbury, Hood County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Local stonemason I.W. Walley erected the rock walls of this masonry commercial building in 1899. A cast iron storefront and decorative brickwork enhance the plastered facade. The two story structure was built for Wesley Smith Harris (1854-1930), who ran a furniture store and funeral home here. The two businesses were associated because at that time furniture manufacturers made casket parts. Ben Estes later took over operation of both concerns.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Local stonemason I.W. Walley laid up the rock walls of this two-story commercial block on Granbury's square in 1899, dressing it with a cast-iron storefront and decorative brickwork behind a plastered facade. It was built for Wesley Smith Harris, who ran both a furniture store and a funeral home under the same roof — a pairing that made practical sense in an era when furniture makers also produced casket parts. The two businesses passed together to Ben Estes in later years.
Why it matters
The building captures the resourceful blending of trades in a small Texas county seat, where a single merchant could furnish a family's home and bury its dead from the same storefront.
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Related people
- · Wesley Smith Harris
- · I.W. Walley
Themes & tags
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