Centennial Memorial Museum

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Centennial Memorial Museum in Nueces County. Now settle in, because this is a story about a building that kept reinventing itself, and every time it did, Corpus Christi found a way to show up for it. The Centennial Memorial Museum was built as part of a statewide commemoration of the one hundredth anniversary of Texas Independence.

That's the kind of occasion that makes people want to do something lasting. In 1935, the Centennial Advisory Board of Nueces County sat down to figure out exactly what that something would be. Their original plans centered on hosting the annual splash days event and a historical pageant.

Fine ideas, both of them. But then somebody in that room said the word museum, and suddenly the conversation got a whole lot bigger. A museum offered educational possibilities.

Promotion of regional history. Increased tourism. A new community center.

One building, doing the work of many. In 1938, the city of Corpus Christi donated a site within South Bluff Park and put up twelve hundred dollars toward the cost of construction. The commission of control allocated four thousand dollars more.

And the citizens of the area, regular folks, donated over a thousand dollars on top of that. Construction began in December of 1938 and was completed on May 18, 1940. The building came in at one story, sixty by forty feet.

Not exactly sprawling. But the vision inside it was. Mary Louise DeGarmo, the historian on the committee, planned what she called a three-in-one museum: history, art, and science, all under one modest roof.

Cattle brands shared space with model airplanes. Boat models sat alongside photography and geological exhibits. The whole strange, wonderful mix of it was meant to capture the uniqueness of the region, and it did.

Art exhibits kept growing as the community's own participation in art grew right along with them. Then came World War II, and the museum was pressed into service as a military support facility. The exhibits were removed.

When the dust settled, only the art component remained. History and science had moved on to a new location. The building had changed its purpose, and so it changed its name.

In 1944, with the creation of the Corpus Christi Art Foundation, it became the Centennial Art Museum. It kept on being a vital cultural force in the community, right up until the space that had always been a limitation finally forced the art museum's relocation to the art and science park on Shoreline Boulevard. Sixty by forty feet.

It never got any bigger. But what happened inside those walls? That kept growing right up until the day it moved out the door.

What the marker says

The Centennial Memorial Museum was built as part of a statewide commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of Texas Independence. In 1935, the Centennial Advisory Board of Nueces County discussed plans for the centennial. Original plans centered on hosting the annual splash days event and a historical pageant. However, the idea of a museum soon offered educational possibilities, promotion of regional history, increased tourism and a new community center. In 1938, the city of Corpus Christi donated a site within South Bluff Park and offered $1,200 toward the cost of the building. The commission of control allocated $4,000 and the citizens of the area donated over $1,000. Construction began in December 1938 and was completed on May 18, 1940. As a one-story 60 by 40 foot building, the museum was limited in space. Initially, Mary Louise Degarmo (d.1953), the historian on the committee, planned for a three-in-one museum highlighting history, art and science. Cattle brands, model airplanes, boat models, photography and geological exhibits promoted the uniqueness of the region. Art exhibits at the museum continued to grow as community participation in art also grew. After World War II, when the museum was used as a military support facility and the exhibits were removed, only the art component of the museum remained, as the history and science components were moved to a new location. In 1944, with the creation of the Corpus Christi Art Foundation, the museum changed its name to the Centennial Art Museum. The museum continued to be a vital cultural force in the community until space limitations forced the art museum's relocation to the art and science park on Shoreline Boulevard.