W. H. Stark House facts for kids
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W. H. Stark House
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Stark House in 2006
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 W. H. Stark House
Location in Texas
W. H. Stark House
Location in the United States
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| Location | 611 W. Green Ave., Orange, Texas |
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| Area | 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Built | 1894 |
| Architectural style | Queen Anne, Queen Anne-Eastlake |
| NRHP reference No. | 76002056 |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | December 12, 1976 |
The W.H. Stark House is a beautiful, old Victorian home in Orange, Texas. It has been fully restored and is very large, about 14,000 square feet! You can find it on the corner of Green Avenue and Sixth Street.
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A Look Back: The Stark Family Home
This amazing house was once the home of William Henry and Miriam Lutcher Stark. They loved collecting rare and special items.
Miriam Lutcher moved to Orange with her parents, Henry and Frances Lutcher, in the late 1870s. Her father, Henry, helped run a big lumber company. The Lutcher family was very generous and helped the Orange community a lot. This tradition of giving back continues even today!
In 1881, Miriam married William Henry Stark. He became very successful in banking, oil, rice, and the timber business. They moved into their new home in 1894. They lived there until 1936. William and Miriam were very passionate about collecting art and unique objects. Their son, H.J. Lutcher Stark, grew up seeing his parents' love for helping others and supporting the arts.
When the Stark family moved in, William was 43, Miriam was 35, and their son Lutcher was 7. They were the only family to ever live in the house. After William and Miriam Stark passed away in 1936, Lutcher Stark closed the house. It stayed empty until 1970. That's when work began to restore it! The restoration took ten years. The house opened as a museum on February 10, 1981, so people could visit and see how the family lived.
Inside the Stark House: Design and Treasures
Construction on The W.H. Stark House started in June 1893 and finished in 1894. The house is built in the Queen Anne architectural style. This style often has long, sloped roofs, balconies on the second floor, and tall chimneys. It also features wide porches and round towers.
The ceilings inside are very high! The first floor ceilings are 12 feet tall. The second floor ceilings are 11 feet tall, and the third floor ceilings are 10.5 feet tall. The outside walls are very thick, about 10 inches, with two layers for protection. The inside walls are even thicker, about 16 inches! The house has three floors, and the first two floors have the same layout. It even has a concrete basement, which was very unusual for Southeast Texas back then.
Cypress wood was chosen for the main structure because of the damp weather in the area. Longleaf yellow pine was used for all the detailed designs. Many parts were shaped using a foot-powered machine. Every piece of wood had to be cut and measured perfectly. All the wood came from the Lutcher and Moore Lumber Mills.
Today, the 14,000-square-foot home looks much like it did in the 1920s. It has fifteen rooms across three stories. You can see the family's original furniture, carpets, and silver. There are also antique porcelains and beautiful cut glass. The ceiling in the Music Room has a special oil painting on canvas by artist E. Theo Behr. It shows a scene with cherubs. The house also holds many unique items. These include a one-of-a-kind sterling silver tea set from the Gorham Manufacturing Company and a rare copy of the Napoleon death mask.
The W.H. Stark House is recognized as an important historical place. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is also a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, named by the Texas Historical Commission.
The Stark Foundation: Helping the Community
The W.H. Stark House is owned and managed by the Nelda C. and H.J. Lutcher Stark Foundation. This is a private, non-profit group started in 1961 in Orange, Texas. Their goal is to make life better in Southeast Texas. They do this by supporting education, the arts, and health services.
The Foundation runs several important places:
- The Stark Museum of Art
- The W.H. Stark House
- Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center
- Lutcher Theater
These places offer the community wonderful ways to learn about art, history, nature, and culture.
See also
