Henry C. Trost

Duane's take

The way I heard it told, this one comes straight from the official marker for Henry C. Trost, out of El Paso county, and I'll give it to you just as it stands. Now, if you've driven through El Paso and let your eyes wander up, chances are you've already met Henry C.

Trost. You just didn't know his name. Trost was born in Ohio.

Not exactly the first place that comes to mind when you think about the grand architectural story of the American Southwest. But sometimes a man's destiny and his birthplace are strangers to each other, and Trost made his way to El Paso and made it his home, his canvas, his life's work. He came in influenced by the heavy hitters.

Louis Sullivan. Frank Lloyd Wright. And the Mission Revival style, that old warm thread running through the Southwest like caliche dust in a west Texas wind.

Trost took all of that, those big names, those established movements, and he didn't just copy them. He developed his own architectural style. His own.

One built to reflect the southwest climate, because out here the land has opinions, and any building that ignores them doesn't last long. And what he left behind? Well, let's just walk through a few of them.

Hotel Cortez. El Paso High School. The Paso del Norte Hotel.

Bassett Tower. These are early twentieth century landmarks, and they are still there, still standing, still anchoring El Paso's skyline and streetscape like they own the place. Which, in a manner of speaking, they do.

One of the most prolific architects of the American Southwest. That's not my description. That's the record speaking.

Henry C. Trost died in 1933. But here's the thing about a man who builds in stone and steel.

The firm he founded with his brothers, it kept going. Kept right on going until the 1950s. Long after Henry was gone, the work continued.

That's the mark of a builder. Not just what he raises up while he's standing, but what keeps rising after he's not.

What the marker says

Henry C. Trost Henry C. Trost was one of the most prolific architects of the American Southwest. His history is closely tied to that of his chosen base of operation, El Paso. Ohio native Trost was strongly influenced by Louis Sullivan and Frank Lloyd Wright, as well as by the Mission Revival style. Using those influences, Trost developed his own architectural style to reflect the southwest climate, designing many early 20th-century El Paso landmarks, including Hotel Cortez, El Paso High School, Paso del Norte Hotel and Bassett Tower. Trost died in 1933. The firm he founded with his brothers continued until the 1950s. Recorded - 2003