MONOGRAPHS OF KINNEY COUNTY’S ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE: Officer’s Quarters Building T-254

This bi-weekly feature examines the enduring unique architecture to be found here in Kinney County by spotlighting individual buildings and providing brief histories, complimented by period photographs. Our intent is to explore the past, inspire the present, and build the future by showcasing the remarkable associations and legacies of structures which have stood the test of time and continue to contribute so much to the exceptional heritage of Kinney County. Our next subject is “Officer’s Quarters Building T-254” a compatible structure to the Fort Clark Historic District and placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.

This seemingly out of place small frame building with the style of a bungalow or cottage, dates from 1939-40. Few photos exist of its army days, which lasted less than five years. The building number prefaced with “T” is the army’s way of placing the structure in the category of “temporary.” Some 87 years later it has hardly been temporary and holds the distinction of being the only remaining wood frame [not log] structure in the Fort Clark National Register Historic District.

The present building occupies the site of a building competed in 1856 to serve as the first post hospital. It was a substantial stone building which performed many useful functions during its eighty plus years of military service. Its distinctive center chimney made the building stand apart from the infantry barracks across the parade ground and helps identify the building in historic views. By 1870 the original post hospital was judged to be in much need of repair and it was replaced in 1874 by a new larger hospital at the southern corner of the main post. In 1889 Fort Clark was one of the first posts in Texas to establish a “canteen” for the enlisted soldiers and this building was chosen to fulfill that purpose. The building provided ... a room which was used as a restaurant for the officers; another room for the married soldiers; and a large general store, where the men could buy what they wanted at first-cost price. After 1895 the term “canteen” was replaced with “post exchange” and the building continued in that role into the new century. By 1910 Fort Clark’s “PX” had moved to another location and now the building became the barracks for the garrison’s regimental band. Following the Great War the post chapel and library found a comfortable home in this venerable multi-purpose structure. On the eve of World War II the Army determined the building had outlived its usefulness and it disappeared forever, demolished in the name of progress, replaced by a comfortable wood frame set of junior officers’ quarters.

Preservation architect Killis P. Almond, Jr. observed in 1981, “This one-story building has a rectangular plan with an extension to the rear (west) and side (north) with hipped roofs. Construction appears to be stucco and wood sheathing on a wood log frame. Six-over-six and nine-over-nine windows are typical. The roofs are covered with asphalt composition shingles.” Although this may be a U.S. Army family housing standardized plan from the 1930s, no Quartermaster construction plans have been located for this structure which was built at the same time as the swimming pool, Dickman Hall, motor pool, and cavalry stables. It is very similar to wood frame officer quarters which once lined what is now Sunset Lane. The building is now clad in shiplap siding and painted in the 1928 post color scheme. As a minimum this unique building is entitled to display a National Register plaque.

Monographs of Kinney County’s Architectural Heritage is written by Bill Haenn, FCHC Senior Historian. Fort Clark Heritage Council is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, established in 2023, to advocate for the preservation and protection of the architecture and other historic resources in the Fort Clark National Register Historic District for the benefit  of the visiting public and future generations, providing for the advancement and strengthening of heritage tourism initiatives by growing recognition of and visitation to the Fort Clark Historic District and being committed to endorsing and promulgating the rich history of Fort Clark by expanding upon related educational and research efforts. Find this article and more online at  KinneyCountyPost.com