What You Can Do
- Visit downtown
- Learn more about our work in Galveston after Hurricane Ike.
11 Most Endangered
Cast-Iron Architecture
Year Listed: 2009
Location: Galveston , Texas
Current Status: Endangered
Threat: Deterioration, Natural Forces, Neglect
Latest News
June 2009: The Galveston City Council has included $775K in non-Housing Community Development Block Grant Disaster Funding in round one of their application process to help fund the restoration of the city's Cast-Iron Architecture. Galveston will have to compete with other municipalities and counties for a second allocation. Learn more.
The Galveston Historical Foundation, who will administer these grants to property owners, credits the 11 Most Endangered listing as being directly responsible for this funding and their selection as one of the 42 Galveston recovery projects. Learn more.
Cast-Iron Architecture of Galveston
Debris linking the Strand after Hurricane Ike.
Cast-Iron Architecture of Galveston
View of a Galveston street after the devastation of Hurricane Ike.
Cast-Iron Architecture of Galveston
A crowd gathered during "Dickens on the Strand."
Cast-Iron Architecture of Galveston
Cast-Iron Architecture rusting on the Strand, in Galveston.
Cast-Iron Architecture of Galveston
Cast-Iron Architecture of Galveston
Historic photograph of the Hendley Building, circa 1870.
Significance
The late-19th-century Greek Revival and Italianate buildings with elaborate cast-iron storefronts in Galveston's 12-block Strand/Mechanic National Historic Landmark District constitute one of the largest collections of historic commercial buildings in the country. They are reminders of a time when this small island was a center of finance and commerce, with a bustling commercial district nicknamed "The Wall Street of the Southwest." Although the buildings have weathered storms and economic downturns, the blow delivered by Hurricane Ike in September of 2008 has left the Galveston historic commercial district fighting to survive.
On September 13, 2008, Galveston Island took a direct hit from Hurricane Ike, and the downtown commercial district was flooded with 10–13 feet of a noxious mix of salt water, oil and debris. When the water receded after two days, the full impact could be seen: destroyed interiors, ruined mechanical systems and the devastation of Galveston's trademark decorative cast-iron embellishments. In addition, Hurricane Ike's wrath has created structural deficiencies, posing a threat to the integrity of many of the district's buildings.
When it was founded in the 1830s, Galveston was little more than a barrier island with a natural harbor and a barren landscape. Within decades, the city's founders had created a major port, employing architectural cast iron – both structural and ornamental – as the preferred building material. More than 44% of the buildings in the Strand/Mechanic district have cast-iron storefronts, along with buildings along Market and Post Office streets, and many more have brick fronts with cast-iron details. The cast iron storefronts took the full force of Hurricane Ike's assault, and today, the 1859 Hendley Buildings, once used as a Civil War lookout and, also, reportedly where the first shot of the Battle of Galveston was fired, are suffering from severe structural problems and demolition by neglect.
For more than three decades, the Galveston Historical Foundation has championed economic revitalization in the historic district, and each year it holds a well-attended holiday festival, Dickens on the Strand. Even before Hurricane Ike, however, downtown Galveston was experiencing an economic downturn that saw businesses leaving and buildings deteriorating due to neglect. In addition, many business owners had no flood insurance and have not reopened in the wake of the storm – and FEMA’s relief efforts have been slow to unfold. Compounding the already dire situation, the City of Galveston is facing a severe economic decline and has been unable to offer assistance with the revitalization of the historic commercial district.
Updates
April 2009: The cast iron storefronts took the full force of Hurricane Ike's assault in 2008 and today are suffering from severe structural problems and demolition by neglect.
Site videos produced by Polivision Productions.
Share your memories of this endangered place
Submitted by zenhandyman at: October 23, 2009
I restore and make functional the original transom windows with the old-timey 34" operating rod and all the hardware. Tim: (409) 939-9646 - (Galveston)
Submitted by TL at: August 9, 2009
Galveston and the people who live there are an insperation on what can be done when we stand together to acheive a positive goal. Saving a part of our history that cannot be duplicated with the same soul and spirit that it was created from is man giving for a greater purpose.
Submitted by marjazz at: July 18, 2009
Sad to see such deterioration. How about having some donations from crude oil owners of Texas?
Submitted by Anonymous at: June 4, 2009
God bless it