Minchen House
Houston, Harris County, Texas
Marker Inscription
A pioneer in the oil and gas industry in Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana, real estate investor Simon Minchen (1886-1958) and his wife, Mamie (Pesses) (1887-1986), purchased this lot in 1930 for $4,500. They paid noted Houston architect Joseph Finger $1,250 to design this house for their family, and contractor w. J. Goggan, known for his exceptional craftsmanship, completed it in 1931 for $25,000. A rare example of Italian Renaissance architecture in Houston, the Minchen House exhibits prominent characteristics of that style, including the clay tile roof and arched windows and doors. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1999
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Simon Minchen, a pioneer of the oil and gas business across Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana, bought this Houston lot with his wife Mamie in 1930 and commissioned noted architect Joseph Finger to design a family home. Completed in 1931 by a builder prized for his craftsmanship, the house is an uncommon Houston example of Italian Renaissance style, with a clay tile roof and arched windows and doors. It stands as a mark of the wealth the early oil industry brought to the city.
Why it matters
Homes like this one trace how the oil boom of the early twentieth century remade Houston, funding a generation of ambitious architecture as petroleum fortunes reshaped the city.
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Related people
- · Simon Minchen
- · Mamie Pesses Minchen
- · Joseph Finger
Themes & tags
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