The Ashley Phelps Home
Big Sandy, Upshur County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Big Sandy merchant J. B. Rowe and his wife Helen (Bray) built this home about 1905. In 1909 they sold it to Ashley W. and Ruth (Prothro) Phelps, who owned a local dry goods store. For many years after Ashley's death in 1922 Ruth operated it as a boardinghouse for area school teachers. She lived here until her death in 1961. A center of social activity during the Phelps' ownership, the house features influences of the Queen Anne and colonial revival styles. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1982
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Built around 1905 by a Big Sandy merchant and sold in 1909 to dry-goods owners Ashley and Ruth Phelps, this Queen Anne and Colonial Revival home became a hub of local social life. After Ashley's death in 1922, Ruth kept the house alive for decades as a boardinghouse for area schoolteachers, living there until her own death in 1961.
Why it matters
The home reflects both small-town architectural ambition and the quiet economic independence a widow could carve out by running a boardinghouse in early 20th-century Texas.
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Related people
- · Ashley W. Phelps
- · Ruth Phelps
- · J. B. Rowe
Themes & tags
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