Staacke Brothers Building facts for kids

Staacke Brothers Building
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Staacke Bros. Bldg (green and red-left) Stevens Bldg (white and red-right)
Staacke Bros. Building Location in Texas Show map of Texas Staacke Bros. Building Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	309 E. Commerce St. San Antonio, Texas
NRHP reference No.	80004079
Quick facts for kids Significant dates
Added to NRHP	September 9, 1980

The Staacke Brothers Building is located in the Bexar County city of San Antonio in the U.S. state of Texas. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Bexar County, Texas. The structure was designated a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1984.

Staacke Brothers

August F. Staacke (1825–1909) was an immigrant from Hanover, Germany, who developed a successful mercantile business in San Antonio. He carried Studebaker wagons, and imported commercial prairie schooner wagons that were built to withstand the rugged terrain of westward expansion. The carriage trade portion of his business was sold to his sons August, Rudolph and Herman, officially being known as the Staacke Brothers in 1889.

Building

Originally the site of a First Presbyterian Church, August F. Staacke bought the lot at 309 E. Commerce in 1869, and hired John H. Kampmann to erect a storehouse on the site. In 1894, James Reily Gordon designed a Renaissance Revival three-story red sandstone and pink granite building that included a basement. The original building was 300 feet by 269.90 feet.

In 1979 a local hospital bought both the Stevens and the Staacke Brothers buildings with the intent of razing the structures to convert the property to a hospital parking lot. The San Antonio Conservation Society stepped in to preserve architectural history and purchased both buildings. In 1982, a group of investors bought and restored the two structures, with a conditional agreement that only preserved the front of both buildings. The rears of the structures were razed for a parking lot. The Staacke building was reduced to its current 42 feet in width and 97.5 feet in depth. Each floor covers an area of 4,000 square feet (370 m²).