The W. A. "Bay" Evans Home
Conroe, Montgomery County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Architect Blum E. Hester, who designed the Creighton Theatre, drew the plans for this house in 1933. Built for William Arthur "Bay" Evans (1900-1954) and his wife Garnet, the residence features elements of the Renaissance Revival style. A leader in Conroe during the city's oil boom period, Evans operated the Humble Oil Co. Bulk Station and was a director of the First National Bank. He also served as a city councilman and Chamber of Commerce president. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1984
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Designed in 1933 by architect Blum E. Hester—also responsible for the Creighton Theatre—this Renaissance Revival residence was built for William Arthur "Bay" Evans and his wife Garnet. Evans was a prominent figure during Conroe's oil-boom years, running the Humble Oil bulk station and serving as a bank director, city councilman, and Chamber of Commerce president. The home reflects the prosperity that oil brought to the small East Texas city.
Why it matters
The house is a tangible reminder of the East Texas oil boom that transformed sleepy towns like Conroe into centers of wealth and ambition in the early 20th century.
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Related people
- · William Arthur "Bay" Evans
- · Blum E. Hester
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Conroe
Conroe, TX
Conroe began in 1881 as Isaac Conroe's sawmill in the East Texas pine forest, at a spot where two railroads met and where the town was first known simply as Conroe's Switch. Lumbering brought early prosperity, and the settlement — still wild enough that a deer was once shot on the courthouse square — became county seat in 1889 and incorporated in 1904. The 1931 Strake oil discovery transformed the timber town into a booming petroleum center.
Conroe Fire of 1911
Conroe, TX
In the early morning of February 21, 1911, a fire broke out in the Capitol Drug Store on Chambers Street and, driven by a north wind, swept through downtown Conroe toward the railroad tracks. The volunteer fire company, armed with a single hand-pulled hose cart and too little water pressure, could not stop it, and sixty-five buildings, businesses, and homes were lost at a cost of some $150,000. In response the city council quickly required fireproof construction, then mandated brick and stone, and downtown rose again in the stately masonry buildings that still stand.
Montgomery County Courthouses
Conroe, TX
Montgomery County was the third county created by the Republic of Texas, established by act of Congress on December 14, 1837, in response to a settlers' petition, and its sprawling original boundaries later gave rise to several neighboring counties. The town of Montgomery served as the first seat, where log cabins and a wood building housed county government until 1889, when an election moved the seat to Conroe. A brick courthouse rose here in 1891, and the present Art Deco building was completed in 1936 amid the prosperity of the Conroe oil boom, later expanded as the county grew.
Conroe Telephone Exchange
Conroe, TX
Conroe's telephone service began in 1899 inside Gilbert's Drug Store, where a local exchange grew out of a long-distance line running up from Houston. George Madeley soon bought the operation and ran it from his building on this site, and by the late 1920s it had grown into a busy switchboard staffed by toll, rural, and local operators. A dial system arrived in 1954, carrying the small-town exchange into the modern era.