James L. Autry House
Houston, Harris County, Texas
Marker Inscription
MISSISSIPPI NATIVE JAMES L. AUTRY (1859-1920) MOVED TO CORSICANA IN 1876. THERE HE STUDIED LAW AND HELD CIVIC OFFICES AT THE TIME OF THE FIRST OIL DISCOVERIES IN TEXAS. HE WAS CHIEF COUNSEL FOR THE TEXAS CO. (LATER TEXACO) AND A PIONEER IN THE NEW FIELD OF PETROLEUM LAW. AUTRY COMMISSIONED SANGUINET AND STAATS TO DESIGN THIS HOME, WHICH WAS CONSTRUCTED IN 1912. THE NEOCLASSICAL DESIGN FEATURES A DOUBLE BALUSTRADED GALLERY AND LARGE FLUTED DORIC COLUMNS. ALSO PROMINENT ARE A PORTE-COCHERE AND FERNERY (SUNROOM), AND A HIPPED LUDOWICI TILE ROOF. THE REAR GARAGE HAS UPSTAIRS SERVANTS QUARTERS.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
James L. Autry came to Corsicana in 1876 and studied law just as Texas's first oil discoveries were transforming the state's economy. As chief counsel for the Texas Company—later Texaco—he helped invent the new field of petroleum law. In 1912 he commissioned the noted firm Sanguinet and Staats to build this Neoclassical home, distinguished by its double galleries, fluted Doric columns, and tile roof.
Why it matters
Autry's career and mansion capture the moment oil remade Texas, when the legal and financial scaffolding of the petroleum age was being built alongside the fortunes it created.
Own a business near here? Add it to the map.
Related people
- · James L. Autry
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Myer-Hall House
Houston, TX
The Myer-Hall House rose in 1910 from the drafting tables of Sanguinet and Staats, a firm that helped define the streetscapes of early-twentieth-century Texas. Built for attorney and civic leader Sterling Myer, the half-timbered Tudor Revival house later became the decades-long home of engineer and businessman James Donald Hall and his family. Its gables, sunroom, and porte-cochere capture the aspirations of Houston's growing professional elite.
F.C.L. and Emilie Neuhaus House
Houston, TX
Houston businessman Franz Carl Ludwig Neuhaus and his wife Emilie commissioned the noted firm Sanguinet and Staats to design this Colonial Revival house in 1909, completing it the following year. Classical touches — a Doric-entablature portico, arched sidelights, and a porte cochere — mark it as fine early-twentieth-century craftsmanship. It was the first home built on Courtlandt Place, one of Houston's early planned residential enclaves, and stayed in the family until 1945.
Edwin and Daphne Neville House
Houston, TX
This two-and-a-half-story brick Tudor Revival residence was designed in 1914 by Houston architect Birdsall P. Briscoe, and it still keeps its original floor plan, half-timbered gables, steep hipped roof, and one-story brick loggias. It was home to Edwin L. Neville, a partner at Dorrance & Company, and his wife Daphne Palmer, both active in Houston civic life through the Community Chest, the Junior League, and area hospitals and chapels. The house stayed in the Neville family until 1949.
Ezekial and Mary Jane Miller House
Houston, TX
Around 1900, Ezekial Miller arrived in Houston and built a thriving timber business, becoming a well-known merchant and civic leader in a city then booming on lumber and commerce. In 1905 he built this home for his wife Mary Jane and their five children. Its corner tower, dormer window, and mix of Queen Anne exuberance with restrained Colonial Revival lines typify the work of Houston's early-20th-century builders.