Texas State Archives – Page 2

The Sunday porch: somewhere in Texas

April 6, 2014March 21, 2016 Cindy at enclos*ure1 Comment

“Unidentified house,” probably by Fanny Ratchford, 1936, via Texas State Archives Commons on flickr. (You can click on the photo to enlarge it.)

It’s interesting to me that the roof of the house extends beyond the edge of the porch. The pretty columns are not attached to the railings, but come down to the ground a few feet beyond them.

There seems to be a word — maybe a name — on the wall above the chair on the left side, but I can’t read it.

ADDENDUM: The way the columns are set makes this a rain porch.

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Among a little wind grit, in a grid on a grid, somewhere
like the crossroads of outer space and Earth, Texas,
a handful of ragged elms withstand a long sway
of heat and wind. These old guards of a home haunt
the field but wither even as ghosts must. Honor them
with a walk among homesick bricks, and prophesy good.

— John Poch, from “The Llano Estacado“

The Sunday porch: the begonia

February 2, 2014April 13, 2016 Cindy at enclos*ure3 Comments

“Woman standing beside potted begonias on porch, message from Rosa to Alice on back.” Via the Samuel Bell Maxey Collection of the Texas State Archives Commons on flickr.

Beautiful plant. Conditions must have been ideal on the porch. Or was it recently evicted from the living room for taking up too much space?

Unfortunately, Rosa’s message to Alice is not revealed. A thank you note for the original cuttings? Or just a little gardening conversation/showing off?

I’m also curious about whether the chicken wire all along the front railings was supporting vining plants or keeping animals (or even chickens) back.

The Archives’ photostream gives no information on the photographer, location, or date for this image. The Samuel Bell Maxey Collection includes the late 19th and early 20th century photographs of the Maxey family of Paris, (northeastern) Texas.

Vintage landscape: ruins

January 27, 2014April 2, 2023 Cindy at enclos*ureLeave a comment

“Ruins of unidentified concrete home,” Lamar Co., Texas, 1935, probably by Fanny Ratchford, via Texas State Archives Commons on flickr.

Beautiful matrix of wild plants. . . . Be sure to click the photo and see it enlarged.

The wind that wanders, the weeds wind-shaken,
These remain. . . .

— Algernon Charles Swinburne, from “A Forsaken Garden“

The Sunday porch: dogtrot in Texas

January 26, 2014April 13, 2016 Cindy at enclos*ure7 Comments

“Unidentified Dogtrot* House” in Texas (exact location unknown), 1935, probably** taken by Fanny Ratchford, via Texas State Archives Commons on flickr.

Fannie Elizabeth Ratchford was a librarian who worked in the rare books collection of the University of Texas at Austin from 1919 to 1957. During the 1930s and 40s, she also began to put together a photographic and data survey of 19th c. Texas architecture.

Unfortunately, she ran out of time and funding before the planned book could be assembled and published. Her images, correspondence, questionnaires, and lists were donated to the Texas State Archives. Only the photos are available online, but they are wonderful. I’ll post some more in the coming weeks.

They sang Green, Green Grass of Home.
They sang Ne Me Quitte Pas beneath mesquite.

— Ange Mlinko, from “Escape Architecture“

*More about dogtrot houses in Texas here.

**According to an email from the Archives: “Although the majority of the images within our Fannie Ratchford photograph collection were taken by Ratchford, she also acquired photographs from the Historic American Building Survey [HABS] as well as other photographers.”