The Hiram B. Reynolds Property

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Hiram B. Reynolds Property in Bell County. Now settle in, because this is a story about a house that outlasted almost everything around it, and almost is a word that carries some weight before we're done.

Hiram B. Reynolds was born in Tennessee in 1858, and when he was just a boy, in 1866, his family brought him to Texas. They landed near a place called Sparta, a locality that you won't find on any map today, because Sparta is now absorbed into Fort Hood.

He grew up on a farm, got himself a good education, and then went into business. He ran stores in Nolanville and Belton, became a successful cotton broker, and invested in farms. The man knew how to plant a seed and watch it grow, whether that seed was cotton or capital.

In 1904, Hiram married Mrs. Hettie Mize Hall, a widow who came to the marriage with three children of her own. Together, Hiram and Hettie had two sons.

So picture that household, five children, two people building something together. Then in 1915, the family made their move to Killeen, and on one of their farms, a farm then producing corn, cotton, livestock, and small grains, they built a house. And not just any house.

For the time and place, this was considered an unusually fine structure. Five bedrooms. A parlor.

A kitchen. A dining room. A butler's pantry.

Halls and porches. A storage room. And here's where it gets a little impressive for 1915 in Central Texas: carbide lights, and a bathroom with fixtures, fixtures only for bathing.

That last detail is worth savoring. Somebody made a deliberate choice about what belonged in a bathroom, and they were not shy about their standards. The Reynolds family called this home until 1942.

Then the United States Government moved in, not as guests, but as the new owners, when Fort Hood was established. The government acquired several hundred farm and ranch houses in that acquisition. Several hundred.

Every one of those homes had a family, a history, a porch where somebody watched the sun go down. And of all those several hundred houses, this one alone survived. It was remodeled in 1954 and went on to serve as the residence of numerous general officers stationed at Fort Hood.

A farmhouse that became quarters for generals. Hiram Reynolds, born 1858, died 1929, never saw that chapter, but the house he built carried the story forward. The marker calls it a symbol of the vanished communities of the area, something that links the past and the present.

And that is true, right up until it isn't. Because the supplemental plate on this marker tells you the rest. After one hundred years of honorable service to the Reynolds family, to Killeen, and to Fort Hood, the Reynolds House was demolished on April 14, 2015.

One hundred years. And then it was gone. The link held as long as it could.

What the marker says

Born in Tennessee, Hiram B. Reynolds (1858-1929) came to Texas with his parents in 1866 and lived near Sparta, a locality now absorbed into Fort Hood. He grew up on a farm and received a good education. Going into business, he had stores in Nolanville and Belton, and became a successful cotton broker and investor in farms. He married in 1904 Mrs. Hettie Mize Hall, a widow with three children; the couple had two sons. In 1915, the family moved to Killeen and built this house on one of their farms which was then producing corn, cotton, livestock, and small grains. For the time and place, this was considered an unusually fine structure. It had five bedrooms, a storage room, halls, porches, a parlor, kitchen, dining room, butler's pantry, carbide lights, and a bathroom with fixtures only for bathing. This was home to members of the Reynolds family until 1942. Of the several hundred farm and ranch houses that were acquired by the United States Government when Fort Hood was established, this house alone survives. As a symbol of the vanished communities of the area, it links the past and present. Remodeled in 1954, it has been the residence of numerous general officers stationed at Fort Hood. (1976) SUPPLEMENTAL PLATE: After 100 years of honorable service to the Reynolds family, Killeen and Fort Hood, the Reynolds House was demolished April 14, 2015.