T. C. Frost and the Frost Bank
San Antonio, Bexar County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Thomas Claiborne Frost (1833-1903) came to Texas from Alabama in 1855 to teach at Austin College, Huntsville. Admitted to the bar in 1856, he served as a Texas Ranger before setting up a law practice in Comanche County. He was a delegate to the Seccession Convention in 1861 and an officer in the Confederate Army. For a time after 1865, he ran freight business between San Antonio nd the Port of Indianola. In 1868 Frost entered a partnership with his brother John and M.L. Fitch in a mercantile company located at this site. In 1874 T.C. Frost became the sole owner of the operation, to which he added a warehousing and wool commission business. Because Frost was a trusted merchant with a strong safe, he served as banker for the conveince of his customers. Frost gradually phased out his mercantile and wool interests and developed the service into a general banking business. The bank acquired a national charter in 1899. Thornton, Wright and Co., formerly Traders National Bank, and Lockwood National Bank merged with Frost. In 1922 Frost National Bank erected this 12-story building on the original store site. The bank moved to larger facilities on West Houston Street in 1973.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Thomas Claiborne Frost came to Texas in 1855 as a teacher, then became a lawyer, Texas Ranger, and Confederate officer before settling into commerce in San Antonio. His mercantile and wool business on this site grew into something more when customers began trusting him to hold their money in his sturdy safe—an informal service that he gradually built into the Frost National Bank, chartered in 1899. In 1922 the bank raised a twelve-story tower here, a landmark of the city's business district until the bank moved on in 1973.
Why it matters
Frost's path from frontier merchant to banker mirrors how commerce and credit matured across the post-Civil War Southwest, laying the financial foundations of modern Texas cities.
Plan your visit
NearbyMake a day of it — museums, food, and places to stay near this marker.
Museums & culture
- Spanish Governor's Palace0.1 mi away
- Centro de Artes0.3 mi away
- Buckhorn Saloon and Museum0.3 mi away
- Briscoe Western Art Museum0.3 mi away · 210 West Market Street
- Artpace0.4 mi away · 445 North Main Avenue, San Antonio, TX
- Louis Tussaud’s Waxworks0.4 mi away
Attractions
- River boat boarding0.2 mi away
- Casa Navarro State Historical Site0.2 mi away
- La Villita0.4 mi away
- River boat boarding0.4 mi away
- Sea Life Aquarium0.5 mi away · 849 East Commerce Street, San Antonio, TX
- Yanaguana Garden0.5 mi away
Food & drink
- Paesanos Riverwalk0.3 mi away · 111 Crockett Way, San Antonio, TX
- Landry's Seafood House0.3 mi away · 517 North Presa Street, San Antonio, TX
- Saltgrass Steak House0.3 mi away
- Texas de Brazil0.3 mi away · 313 East Houston Street, San Antonio
- Mad Dogs British Pub0.3 mi away · 123 Losoya Street
- The Original Mexican Restaurant0.3 mi away
Places to stay
- Holiday Inn Riverwalk0.1 mi away · 217 North Saint Mary's Street, San Antonio, TX
- Mokara Hotel and Spa0.2 mi away · 212 West Crockett Street, San Antonio, TX
- The Westin Riverwalk, San Antonio0.2 mi away · 420 West Market Street, San Antonio
- Omni La Mansión del Rio0.2 mi away · 112 College Street, San Antonio
- Sheraton Gunter Hotel San Antonio0.2 mi away · 205 East Houston Street, San Antonio, TX
- Hotel Contessa0.3 mi away · 306 West Market Street
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Related people
- · Thomas Claiborne Frost
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
T. C. Frost Wool Warehouse
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A former Texas Ranger and Confederate soldier, Thomas C. Frost turned to the wool commission trade in San Antonio in the 1870s, buying wool from producers statewide and storing it in warehouses on this site until prices rose. By letting growers avoid selling into a low market, his storage business helped build up the Texas wool industry. Frost gradually began acting as a banker for his customers and ultimately founded the Frost National Bank.
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