DUANE
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Duane's take
Now, I'm drawing straight from the official marker on this one, so let me tell you what it says about a house that was built to turn heads along the Houston Ship Channel. Architect Alfred C. Finn of Houston drew the plans.
And what were those plans? A scaled-down replica of the American White House. Built for oil executive Ross S.
Sterling, born 1875, died 1949. If that name sounds familiar, it should. Ross Sterling was governor of Texas, 1931 to 1933.
But before any of that, he was building something on the shore that people would be talking about for decades. The mansion was completed in 1927, out on the residential stretch known as the Gold Coast, running from La Porte to Morgan's Point, right there on the Houston Ship Channel. By night, you could climb up to the roof deck and look out over the lighted industrial plants of the region.
Just imagine standing up there in the dark, the whole channel glowing below you. Now, they did not build this place to blow away. The exterior walls are layers of stone, concrete, air space, and plastered lath, thick as a fort.
The foundations are deeply sunken. Huge beams run the full length of the structure for hurricane resistance. Because this is Texas, and the Gulf has opinions.
Twenty-one thousand square feet of floor space. At the time it was built, that made it the largest private residence in Texas. Thirty-four rooms.
Fifteen baths. Seven fireplaces. And a dining room that could seat three hundred guests.
Three hundred. That is not a dinner party. That is a small town sitting down to eat.
The adornments were something to behold: silver and gold inlaid sconces, fine carved woods, Tiffany chandeliers. Elaborate facilities for recreation, and for efficient housekeeping, because running a place this size was its own operation. Ross Sterling and his wife Maude Abbie, born a Gage, had several children, and this was the home they made together.
Then, in 1946, Sterling donated the mansion to a civic club. It was used as a juvenile home until 1961. A house built to replicate the White House, raised up along the Gold Coast to seat three hundred at supper, and in the end it became a home for children who needed one.
That is a Texas story if I ever heard one.
What the marker says
Architect Alfred C. Finn of Houston drew the plans for this scaled-down replica of the American White House for oil executive Ross S. Sterling (1875-1949). Completed in 1927 on the residential "Gold Coast" stretching from La Porte to Morgan's Point, it stood as a landmark on the Houston Ship Channel. By night its roof deck commanded a view of the lighted industrial plants in this region. Layers of stone, concrete, air space, and plastered lath form the thick exterior walls. Deeply sunken foundations and huge beams running the length of the structure give it hurricane resistance. With 21,000 square feet of floor space, this was known as the largest private residence in Texas at the time it was built. It has seven fireplaces, 15 baths, 34 rooms-- including a dining room seating 300 guests. Silver and gold inlaid sconces, fine cared woods, and Tiffany chandeliers form some of the adornments. There were elaborate facilities for recreation and for efficient housekeeping. Sterling and his wife Maude Abbie (Gage) had several children. Ross Sterling was governor of Texas 1931-1933. In 1946 he donated his mansion to a civic club and it was used as a juvenile home until 1961.