E. A. Hannaford House

Duane's take

Here's the story as the official marker tells it, and I'm gonna give it to you straight with a little something extra in the pacing. Pull over if you have to; this one's worth a look. We're talking about the E.

A. Hannaford House, right here in Hood County. Edwin Augustus Hannaford.

Even the name sounds like it belongs on a brass plate above a fine door, doesn't it? And brother, the door he eventually built was more than fine. But let's not get ahead of ourselves.

The man was born in England in 1841, and somewhere along the way (across an ocean, across a continent) he found his way to Granbury, Texas. Eighteen seventy-one. Now think about that for a second.

Granbury in 1871. And what does Edwin Augustus Hannaford do the moment he arrives? He opens the town's first drugstore.

The first one. You can imagine what that meant to a growing Texas town: this Englishman walking in and setting up shop where nobody had set up that particular shop before. He and his wife Nettie both put down roots deep enough that the community took notice.

Respected civic leaders, both of them. That kind of standing doesn't happen overnight, and it doesn't happen quietly. It took a full decade (from 1871 right up to 1881) before Edwin decided it was time to build something that matched the life he and Nettie had made.

So in 1881 and into 1882, up went the house. And when it went up, it went up right. Italianate details.

A central entry flanked by bay windows. Bracketed eaves. Pedimented window surrounds.

This was not a man building a shelter. This was a man making a statement in brick and wood and craft, letting Granbury know exactly where he stood. Edwin Augustus Hannaford lived until 1915, long enough to see what he'd built endure.

And endure it has. The house still stands as a reflection (that's the marker's own word, reflection) of his high standing in the community. Some things, it turns out, are built to last.

What the marker says

Built in 1881-82 by Edwin Augustus Hannaford (1841-1915), this home serves as a reflection of his high standing in the community. A native of England, Hannaford came to Granbury in 1871 and opened the town's first drugstore. He and his wife, Nettie, were both respected civic leaders. Exhibiting Italianate details, the home features a central entry flanked by bay windows, bracketed eaves, and pedimented window surrounds. (1988)