HistoricSiteMarkers
Reconstruction & Gilded Age

J.M. and Birdie Nix House

San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas

Marker Inscription

Alabama natives Joseph Madison and Birdie Lanier Nix moved to San Antonio in the early 1890s. J.M. was a businessman who built hotels and other structures. In 1899, the couple built twin houses at 434 and 432 King William. The Free Classic design of this house, the work of Atlee B. Ayres, features a dominant front gabled roof, Palladian attic vent, paired box columns and New England style shingle patterning. The Nixes sold the property in 1912 and later built landmarks throughout San Antonio and South Texas, including the local Nix Professional Building and the Medical Arts Building. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2006

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

Alabama natives Joseph Madison and Birdie Lanier Nix came to San Antonio in the early 1890s, where J.M. made his name erecting hotels and commercial buildings. In 1899 the couple built twin houses on King William Street, and this one—designed by noted architect Atlee B. Ayres in the Free Classic style—shows off a front-gabled roof, Palladian attic vent, and New England-style shingling. The Nixes went on to raise landmarks across the city, including the Nix Professional Building.

Why it matters

The house reflects the Gilded Age prosperity that shaped San Antonio's fashionable neighborhoods and the builder-entrepreneurs who left their mark on its skyline.

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Related people

  • · Joseph Madison Nix
  • · Birdie Lanier Nix
  • · Atlee B. Ayres

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