Woolls Building
Center Point, Kerr County, Texas
Marker Inscription
One of Center Point's oldest existing commercial structures, the Woolls Building was constructed in 1873-75 to house the mercantile business of George W. Woolls (d. 1876). Local contractor and stonemason Sam H. Wellborn built it of limestone with a full-width balcony and exterior staircase. For most of its history, the first floor of the Woolls Building housed retail businesses, with fraternal organizations meeting on the upper story. The Rising Star Masonic Lodge, which included a number of Texas Rangers among its membership, met here from 1875 until 1900. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2001
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Built of limestone in 1873–75 by stonemason Sam H. Wellborn, the Woolls Building housed George W. Woolls's mercantile business and is one of Center Point's oldest surviving commercial structures. Its full-width balcony and exterior staircase led to an upper floor where fraternal groups gathered, including a Masonic lodge that counted several Texas Rangers among its members. For most of its life the ground floor kept up the town's retail trade.
Why it matters
It preserves the commercial and social heart of a nineteenth-century Hill Country town, down to the Rangers who met upstairs.
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Related people
- · George W. Woolls
- · Sam H. Wellborn
Themes & tags
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