HistoricSiteMarkers
Postwar & Contemporary

Williams Medical Clinic Building

Mineola, Wood County, Texas

Marker Inscription

WILLIAMS MEDICAL CLINIC BUILDING DR. JAMES W. WILLIAMS, A NATIVE OF MINEOLA, OPENED HIS MEDICAL PRACTICE IN 1946 AFTER HIS SERVICE IN WORLD WAR II. BECAUSE OF THE INCREASE IN THE NUMBER OF HIS PATIENTS, HE BUILT A NEW STATE OF THE ART MEDICAL FACILITY. THE CALIFORNIA-STYLE BUILDING HAS A RED BRICK EXTERIOR WITH A WRAP AROUND WINDOW ON ONE CORNER. ONE OF ITS MOST UNIQUE TRAITS IS THAT IT HAD CENTRAL HEAT AND AIR CONDITIONING, A SYSTEM NOT OFTEN FOUND IN THE 1950s. THE CLINIC IS AN IMPRESSIVE EXAMPLE OF A BUILDING FROM THE 1950s WITH A CONTEMPORARY MODERN ARCHITECTURAL STYLE IN MINEOLA. THOUGH THE BUILDING HAS BEEN PASSED FROM OWNER TO OWNER IT HAS STILL RETAINED THE SAME PURPOSE OF SERVING THE MINEOLA COMMUNITY. RECORDED TEXAS HISTORIC LANDMARK – 2012

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

Mineola native Dr. James W. Williams opened his medical practice in 1946 after returning from World War II service, and a growing patient load led him to build this modern clinic. Its California-style red-brick design, wraparound corner window, and central heating and air conditioning made it strikingly up to date for the 1950s, when such climate control was still rare. The building has changed hands over the years but has continued to serve the Mineola community.

Why it matters

The clinic is a vivid emblem of postwar small-town America, when returning veterans and mid-century modern design reshaped the everyday institutions of towns across the country.

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Related people

  • · Dr. James W. Williams

Themes & tags

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