DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the McClendon-Price House in Travis County. Now settle in, because this one's got lawyers, judges, a football coach, and a father-in-law who knew how to give a wedding gift. Back in 1906, a local architect by the name of Charles H.
Page sat down and designed a house. Not just any house — a two-and-a-half-story American Foursquare with a buff brick exterior, drawing on Prairie style, Craftsman touches, and what the marker calls Eclectic elements. The man wasn't picking just one flavor when he could have all three.
He built it for Judge James Wooten McClendon and his wife Annie, whose maiden name was Watt. Now here's the part worth savoring — Annie's father donated the very site the house sits on. As a wedding gift.
That's not a toaster, folks. That is a statement. McClendon was an attorney and a judge, and he didn't just pass through the courthouse — he served as Chief Justice of the Court of Civil Appeals for twenty-six years.
Twenty-six. While he and Annie were keeping the place, two other judges — Thomas B. Greenwood and Charles G.
Krueger — came through as tenants. Judges stacked up in that house like cord wood. Then in 1944, the McClendons sold the home, and the story turned a corner.
By 1960, the property had a new family: University of Texas head football coach and administrator Ed Price, his wife Betty — maiden name Rugeley — and their family. From the bench to the gridiron, that house has held its ground. Still standing, still carrying every one of those stories inside those buff brick walls.
What the marker says
In 1906, local architect Charles H. Page designed this house for Judge James Wooten McClendon and his wife, Annie (Watt), whose father donated the site as their wedding gift. McClendon was an attorney and judge, serving as Chief Justice of the Court of Civil Appeals for 26 years. Judges Thomas B. Greenwood and Charles G. Krueger were tenants here before the McClendons sold the home in 1944. University of Texas head football coach and administrator Ed Price, his wife, Betty (Rugeley) and their family acquired the property in 1960. The 2 ½-story American Foursquare house with buff brick exterior incorporates elements of Prairie, Craftsman and Eclectic architectural styles.