Mathis House

Duane's take

The way the marker on this old house tells it, here's how I'll lay it out for you. Back in 1868 and 1869, a man named John M. Mathis had this home built for his family.

John was born in 1831 and lived all the way to 1922, and in the years when this house was rising up from the Texas coast, he was one of the men shaping the very ground beneath it. He was instrumental in platting the town of Rockport, and when that town needed its first mayor in 1870, well, John M. Mathis was the man who filled the chair.

Now that is a particular kind of legacy. You build the town, you name the streets, and then you run the place. Not everybody gets to do all three.

But here is where the story takes a turn. In 1880, John deeded this house, the very home he had built for his family, over to his cousin. That cousin was Thomas H.

Mathis, born in 1834, died in 1899. Thomas was no small figure himself. He was a leading rancher, a shipper, and a banker.

The kind of man who had a hand in land, water, and money all at once. And the house he received was worthy of a man like that. It is a raised cottage, built with a center passage plan and an arcaded basement.

The entry portico carries paired fluted columns. And the whole structure wears Italianate, Classical, and Greek Revival details like a coat that was tailored to last. Two cousins, one house, and a town that grew up around them both.

The Mathis house is still standing in Aransas County, and it has got the bones to prove every word of that.

What the marker says

John M. Mathis (1831-1922) had this home built for his family in 1868-69. Instrumental in platting the town of Rockport, he served as its first mayor in 1870. In 1880 he deeded the house to his cousin, Thomas H. Mathis (1834-1899), a leading rancher, shipper, and banker. Exhibiting Italianate, Classical, and Greek Revival details, the raised cottage features a center passage plan, arcaded basement, and entry portico with paired fluted columns. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1989