Markeen Apartments

Markeen Apartments History

The Markeen Apartments are located at 210-14 St. Louis Avenue and 406-10 W. Daggett Avenue in Fort Worth, Texas. They are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places at the local level of significance under Criterion A under the category of Community Planning and Development for their association with the city's dramatic growth during the early decades of the 20th century. From 1900 to 1910, Fort Worth's population grew from 26,688 to 73,312, an increase of nearly 175 per cent. The Markeen Apartments were a part of the building boom associated with this tremendous growth and the need to provide housing for the city's growing professional and business class. They also are significant with the rebuilding of the Near Southside of Fort Worth following the devastating fire of April 3, 1909. The fire destroyed approximately eighteen square blocks and caused nearly $1,000,000 worth of damage. In addition, the Markeen Apartments are eligible at the local level under Criterion C as a rare surviving example of an early 20th century apartment complex in Fort Worth's Near Southside and as excellent early examples of the Prairie School style as applied to apartment buildings. Constructed in 1910, the two 2-story brick buildings feature such hallmarks of the style as low horizontal massing and wide boxed eaves.

Photo at left was taken just after the 1909 fire. Photo at right was taken in 1910 just after the Markeen Apartments were built. Click both to enlarge.

Historical Background

In 1900, Fort Worth, Texas had a population of nearly 27,000. During the first decade of the 20th century, the city had a tremendous growth in population following the arrival of the Armour and Swift packing plants in 1902. Although the packing plants were located on the North Side, all of Fort Worth experienced an increase in population. In addition, the city continued to be an important railroad center which helped to attract manufacturing facilities. With the existence of streetcar lines, it became possible for residents to commute very easily from almost anywhere in the city to places of employment in the Stockyards, downtown, or wherever their jobs might be.

The Near Southside was separated from downtown Fort Worth by the Texas and Pacific (T & P) Railway reservation. By the early 1900s, the area now bounded by the T & P tracks on the north, South Main Street on the east, Pennsylvania Avenue on the south, and Jennings Avenue on the west became home to small commercial buildings along the major corridors, single- and multiple-family housing, and churches. Broadway Avenue, an east-west street located near the northern end of this area and only one block south of the Markeen Apartments, was lined with substantial homes and two major Southside churches, Broadway Baptist and Broadway Presbyterian.

On April 3, 1909, a fire that started near May and Tucker streets spread throughout the district from the southwest to the northeast, consuming nearly everything in its path. All of Fort Worth's fire companies were dispatched to the fire as were companies from neighboring Dallas. The T & P Railway reservation served as a barrier between the Southside and downtown, keeping the destruction from moving into the city's core. The fire burned itself out but not before it destroyed nearly eighteen blocks and caused approximately $1,000,000 of damage. Fortunately, there was only one fatality. The major buildings and structures that were destroyed and their estimated value were as follows: T & P Roundhouse, $75,000; Broadway Baptist Church, $40,000; Broadway Presbyterian Church, $52,000; W. R. Bell residence, 304 Broadway, $5,400; G.R. Laneri residence, 305 Broadway, $4,200; Sam Newmayer residence, 409 Broadway, $8,500; W.E. Williams residence, 123 Broadway, $6,000; Dr. A.C. Walker residence, 106 S. Main, $8,500; and the J.W. Gorrell residence, 317 S. Main, $10,000.

The fire caused city authorities to reconsider local building practices as well as the need to modernize the fire department. By 1910, the city had begun a campaign of constructing new neighborhood fire stations. That also was the year that the city received its first fire truck. But officials knew that to reduce the risk of a major fire, better building practices were needed. Many of the buildings that were destroyed in the blaze were of frame construction and had wood shingle roofs. A year after the fire, an article in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram indicated that most of the district was now in the city's fire limits and that property owners were forced to build with brick or stone. However, it is known that frame buildings were constructed in the area affected by the fire.

On the one-year anniversary of the fire, the district was still in the process of being rebuilt. The Fort Worth Record and Register reported that the district again had "thriving businesses and beautiful residences. . . Although fewer in number, the value of the buildings is more today than before the south side fire." As of that date, $600,000 had been spent rebuilding the area. Nine business houses had been erected at a value of $75,500 and twenty-eight residences and apartment houses had been erected at a value of $338,800. The Broadway Baptist Church was nearing completion and construction of the Broadway Presbyterian Church was about to start. Both buildings were valued at $65,000.

Among the building types needed in the growing city were apartments or flats as they were commonly called in that era. By 1910, free-standing buildings designed strictly as apartment complexes (with no commercial space on lower floors) became popular as a means of providing housing for middle-and upper-income residents attracted to the city. Several apartment buildings were constructed on the western edge of downtown Fort Worth. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram cited the Madrid at Fifth and Lamar as the "premiere" flat of Fort Worth. It was followed by the Sanguinet flats and then the Sanguinet apartment house. Others built around the same time included the Cordova at 507 Taylor, the Woodla or Woodlea at 1011 Burnett and several others. None are believed to be extant.

The construction of apartments buildings was not confined to the downtown. Fort Worth's Southside received its share as well. The Royce Flats, a four-unit building, were located at 1218 S. Hemphill. The Parker Flats containing four units, were located at 1220 S. Hemphill. And the seven-unit Hemphill Apartments were located at 1308 S. Hemphill. All of these have been demolished. Apartments also were constructed within the area destroyed by the 1909 fire. These included the two-story brick Monticello Apartments at 309 Broadway, a three-story brick apartment building at Broadway and St. Louis, a two-story brick building at 208 W. Daggett, a two-story frame building on Galveston, and the fourteen-unit Markeen Apartments at St. Louis and Daggett. Of these buildings, only the Markeen Apartments survive.

The Markeen Apartments are located on Lots 11 and 12 of Block 1 of the Smith, Jones, and Daggett Addition. The lots are located just a few blocks from the Texas and Pacific tracks, the southern boundary of downtown Fort Worth. City Directories seem to indicate that no improvements were made on these lots until the apartments were constructed in 1910. C.W. Forbes, a prominent Fort Worth builder, purchased the lots in September 1909 for $7,000. He and his wife sold them to James J. Parker in March 1910 for $8,000. Parker took out a $15,000 building permit later that month for the construction of a 56-room apartment complex at Daggett and St. Louis. The evening edition of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that building permits for March of 1910 were valued at $265,100, an increase of 150% over building permits for March of 1909. Seventy-six permits had been issued that month, many of which were for large homes. The largest single permit was for the Southwestern Telephone Exchange building at Rosedale and Jennings Avenue, also on Fort Worth's Southside.

James J. Parker was the business manager of the local office of the Dallas News from 1896 to 1915. He also had interest in several real estate ventures, including the Markeen Apartments and the Royce and Parker flats mentioned above. After he left the newspaper, he went into the real estate business with his brother, R. L. Parker. Parker died in Fort Worth in 1918.

It is not known when the Markeen Apartments were completed but Parker began running advertisements for apartments in May 1910 and continued running them through September of that year. The ads read "Modern apartment, 4 rooms and bath, hot and cold water, very desirable for couples. Convenient location: rent very reasonable. J.J. Parker 512 Main Lamar 120." These ads did not state the location of the apartments (512 Main was the address of the Fort Worth office of the Dallas Morning News) but the description and timing of the ads make it possible that they were for the Markeen.

When completed, the Markeen Apartments became home to members of Fort Worth's professional and business class. The apartments' proximity to downtown and two streetcar lines, one located one block to the west on Jennings Avenue and the other located two blocks to the east on South Main Street, likely appealed to many tenants. The apartments also were within walking distance of the T & P Railway station. The 1911 City Directory indicates that all but one of the fourteen units were occupied. It also provides clues as to the types of people who lived there. The tenants included two managers of downtown theaters, three traveling salesmen, a vice president of a local company, a commission agent for the Fort Worth and Denver Railway, the State Commissioner of Labor Statistics, an attorney, and two widows. James J. Parker, the owner of the buildings, lived in Unit L, which was located on the second floor on the south end of the building on St. Louis. The City Directory did not list Parker's wife as a tenant nor did it list wives for any of the other occupants. This may have been a practice of the Directory but it may also indicate that the apartments were more popular with single men. Because they only had one bedroom, married couples, particularly those with children, may have found that the units did not fit their needs. However, it is known that families did live in the one-bedroom apartments in later years.

In 1914, Parker sold the apartments and another parcel of property to his wife, Vista Royce Parker, for one dollar. After Parker's death, Vista Parker married W.H. Henderson. The pair sold the apartments to Frankie Lee Youngblood for $50,000 in 1952.

By 1950, the Markeen Apartments had become home to a mix of working, business, and professional class tenants. The City Directory of that year indicated that the residents included a sheet metal worker, a millwright, a salesman for a farm store, a floor finisher, a lawyer, a book keeper, a yardmaster, and a bank teller. The wife of one of the tenants worked as a seamstress at the Dickson-Jenkins sewing factory located in the building immediately north of the apartments. Several other women tenants also worked there during that era. As the decades wore on, the neighborhood began to change and many of the surrounding buildings were torn down. The congregation of Broadway Presbyterian Church constructed a new building further south near the campus of Texas Christian University and the old church was torn down. Broadway Baptist Church has remained in the neighborhood and enlarged its campus but the 1910 church building is not extant. Many of the large residences along Broadway were demolished. Today, the blocks immediately to the east and south of the Markeen Apartments are largely vacant or have been paved for parking.

By 1990, there were only a few residents left in the Markeen Apartments. The last resident, Frank Widacki, moved out on December 8, 1999. Widacki had lived in Apartment K since moving there at the age of thirteen with his mother in 1946. The Markeen Apartments currently are undergoing rehabilitation as part of the Investment Tax Credit program.

Architectural Significance of the Markeen Apartments

As discussed above, the Markeen Apartments are rare surviving examples of apartments buildings constructed in the early years of the 20th century in Fort Worth. Windshield surveys of the west side of downtown and of the Near Southside indicate that the Markeen Apartments are quite possibly the only surviving examples of this free-standing building type from the 1900-1910 era. There are extant free-standing apartment buildings in the Southside that were constructed between ca. 1913 and 1919. These include the two-story four-unit Bridgeman-Hesterly Apartments at 917 Lipscomb Street (ca. 1913), a two-story brick apartment building at 704 S. Jennings Avenue (ca. 1915), the three-story Dunn Haven Apartments at 1228 S. Adams (ca. 1915), and the two-story Reeves Apartments at 1830 Sixth Avenue (ca. 1917). The Southside also has numerous examples of apartments buildings constructed in the 1920s.

There are extant contemporary examples of buildings with commercial space on the first floor with apartments on the upper floors. Two examples of this type of building are located near the Markeen Apartments. The Modern Apartments, constructed in ca.1905 and located at 101 S. Jennings Avenue, is a three-story Commercial Style building. The other is the Bicocchi Building which was constructed in ca. 1909. This two-story Commercial Style building is located at 213 S. Jennings Avenue on the same block as the Markeen Apartments. Both of these buildings have a strong commercial character which was probably influenced by their location on a busy thoroughfare that connected the Southside to downtown. In contrast, the Markeen Apartments have a strong residential feel with their bay windows, gallaried porticos, and metal-tiled parapets that resemble hipped roofs.

The Markeen Apartments also are excellent examples of the Prairie School style of architecture as applied to multi-family housing. This style was developed by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright and other Chicago area architects. Examples featured such hallmarks as low-pitched roofs with wide overhanging eaves, two-stories with one-story porches or wings, massive square or rectangular piers of masonry supporting porch roofs, and decorative elements that emphasized horizontal massing.

The Markeen Apartments were designed in a vernacular interpretation of the Prairie School style. The two buildings have flat roofs but these are surrounded by a metal-tiled parapet that resembles a hipped roof. Underneath the parapet are wide boxed eaves with widely spaced modillions. The two-tiered porticos are supported by massive brick piers. The use of cast sills, lintels, and caps on the porch piers as well as the wood railings around the porches also enhance the horizontal massing of the buildings.

Preservation Consultant

Fort Worth, Texas



		Markeen Apartments History

Summary The Markeen Apartments are located at 210-14 St. Louis Avenue and 406-10 W. Daggett Avenue in Fort Worth, Texas. They are eligible for the National Register of Historic Places at the local level of significance under Criterion A under the category of Community Planning and Development for their association with the city's dramatic growth during the early decades of the 20th century. From 1900 to 1910, Fort Worth's population grew from 26,688 to 73,312, an increase of nearly 175 per cent. The Markeen Apartments were a part of the building boom associated with this tremendous growth and the need to provide housing for the city's growing professional and business class. They also are significant with the rebuilding of the Near Southside of Fort Worth following the devastating fire of April 3, 1909. The fire destroyed approximately eighteen square blocks and caused nearly $1,000,000 worth of damage. In addition, the Markeen Apartments are eligible at the local level under Criterion C as a rare surviving example of an early 20th century apartment complex in Fort Worth's Near Southside and as excellent early examples of the Prairie School style as applied to apartment buildings. Constructed in 1910, the two 2-story brick buildings feature such hallmarks of the style as low horizontal massing and wide boxed eaves.



	Photo at left was taken just after the 1909 fire. Photo at right was taken in 1910 just after the Markeen Apartments were built. Click both to enlarge.

Historical Background In 1900, Fort Worth, Texas had a population of nearly 27,000. During the first decade of the 20th century, the city had a tremendous growth in population following the arrival of the Armour and Swift packing plants in 1902. Although the packing plants were located on the North Side, all of Fort Worth experienced an increase in population. In addition, the city continued to be an important railroad center which helped to attract manufacturing facilities. With the existence of streetcar lines, it became possible for residents to commute very easily from almost anywhere in the city to places of employment in the Stockyards, downtown, or wherever their jobs might be. The Near Southside was separated from downtown Fort Worth by the Texas and Pacific (T & P) Railway reservation. By the early 1900s, the area now bounded by the T & P tracks on the north, South Main Street on the east, Pennsylvania Avenue on the south, and Jennings Avenue on the west became home to small commercial buildings along the major corridors, single- and multiple-family housing, and churches. Broadway Avenue, an east-west street located near the northern end of this area and only one block south of the Markeen Apartments, was lined with substantial homes and two major Southside churches, Broadway Baptist and Broadway Presbyterian. On April 3, 1909, a fire that started near May and Tucker streets spread throughout the district from the southwest to the northeast, consuming nearly everything in its path. All of Fort Worth's fire companies were dispatched to the fire as were companies from neighboring Dallas. The T & P Railway reservation served as a barrier between the Southside and downtown, keeping the destruction from moving into the city's core. The fire burned itself out but not before it destroyed nearly eighteen blocks and caused approximately $1,000,000 of damage. Fortunately, there was only one fatality. The major buildings and structures that were destroyed and their estimated value were as follows: T & P Roundhouse, $75,000; Broadway Baptist Church, $40,000; Broadway Presbyterian Church, $52,000; W. R. Bell residence, 304 Broadway, $5,400; G.R. Laneri residence, 305 Broadway, $4,200; Sam Newmayer residence, 409 Broadway, $8,500; W.E. Williams residence, 123 Broadway, $6,000; Dr. A.C. Walker residence, 106 S. Main, $8,500; and the J.W. Gorrell residence, 317 S. Main, $10,000. The fire caused city authorities to reconsider local building practices as well as the need to modernize the fire department. By 1910, the city had begun a campaign of constructing new neighborhood fire stations. That also was the year that the city received its first fire truck. But officials knew that to reduce the risk of a major fire, better building practices were needed. Many of the buildings that were destroyed in the blaze were of frame construction and had wood shingle roofs. A year after the fire, an article in the Fort Worth Star-Telegram indicated that most of the district was now in the city's fire limits and that property owners were forced to build with brick or stone. However, it is known that frame buildings were constructed in the area affected by the fire. On the one-year anniversary of the fire, the district was still in the process of being rebuilt. The Fort Worth Record and Register reported that the district again had "thriving businesses and beautiful residences. . . Although fewer in number, the value of the buildings is more today than before the south side fire." As of that date, $600,000 had been spent rebuilding the area. Nine business houses had been erected at a value of $75,500 and twenty-eight residences and apartment houses had been erected at a value of $338,800. The Broadway Baptist Church was nearing completion and construction of the Broadway Presbyterian Church was about to start. Both buildings were valued at $65,000. Among the building types needed in the growing city were apartments or flats as they were commonly called in that era. By 1910, free-standing buildings designed strictly as apartment complexes (with no commercial space on lower floors) became popular as a means of providing housing for middle-and upper-income residents attracted to the city. Several apartment buildings were constructed on the western edge of downtown Fort Worth. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram cited the Madrid at Fifth and Lamar as the "premiere" flat of Fort Worth. It was followed by the Sanguinet flats and then the Sanguinet apartment house. Others built around the same time included the Cordova at 507 Taylor, the Woodla or Woodlea at 1011 Burnett and several others. None are believed to be extant.

The construction of apartments buildings was not confined to the downtown. Fort Worth's Southside received its share as well. The Royce Flats, a four-unit building, were located at 1218 S. Hemphill. The Parker Flats containing four units, were located at 1220 S. Hemphill. And the seven-unit Hemphill Apartments were located at 1308 S. Hemphill. All of these have been demolished. Apartments also were constructed within the area destroyed by the 1909 fire. These included the two-story brick Monticello Apartments at 309 Broadway, a three-story brick apartment building at Broadway and St. Louis, a two-story brick building at 208 W. Daggett, a two-story frame building on Galveston, and the fourteen-unit Markeen Apartments at St. Louis and Daggett. Of these buildings, only the Markeen Apartments survive. The Markeen Apartments are located on Lots 11 and 12 of Block 1 of the Smith, Jones, and Daggett Addition. The lots are located just a few blocks from the Texas and Pacific tracks, the southern boundary of downtown Fort Worth. City Directories seem to indicate that no improvements were made on these lots until the apartments were constructed in 1910. C.W. Forbes, a prominent Fort Worth builder, purchased the lots in September 1909 for $7,000. He and his wife sold them to James J. Parker in March 1910 for $8,000. Parker took out a $15,000 building permit later that month for the construction of a 56-room apartment complex at Daggett and St. Louis. The evening edition of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that building permits for March of 1910 were valued at $265,100, an increase of 150% over building permits for March of 1909. Seventy-six permits had been issued that month, many of which were for large homes. The largest single permit was for the Southwestern Telephone Exchange building at Rosedale and Jennings Avenue, also on Fort Worth's Southside. James J. Parker was the business manager of the local office of the Dallas News from 1896 to 1915. He also had interest in several real estate ventures, including the Markeen Apartments and the Royce and Parker flats mentioned above. After he left the newspaper, he went into the real estate business with his brother, R. L. Parker. Parker died in Fort Worth in 1918.

It is not known when the Markeen Apartments were completed but Parker began running advertisements for apartments in May 1910 and continued running them through September of that year. The ads read "Modern apartment, 4 rooms and bath, hot and cold water, very desirable for couples. Convenient location: rent very reasonable. J.J. Parker 512 Main Lamar 120." These ads did not state the location of the apartments (512 Main was the address of the Fort Worth office of the Dallas Morning News) but the description and timing of the ads make it possible that they were for the Markeen. When completed, the Markeen Apartments became home to members of Fort Worth's professional and business class. The apartments' proximity to downtown and two streetcar lines, one located one block to the west on Jennings Avenue and the other located two blocks to the east on South Main Street, likely appealed to many tenants. The apartments also were within walking distance of the T & P Railway station. The 1911 City Directory indicates that all but one of the fourteen units were occupied. It also provides clues as to the types of people who lived there. The tenants included two managers of downtown theaters, three traveling salesmen, a vice president of a local company, a commission agent for the Fort Worth and Denver Railway, the State Commissioner of Labor Statistics, an attorney, and two widows. James J. Parker, the owner of the buildings, lived in Unit L, which was located on the second floor on the south end of the building on St. Louis. The City Directory did not list Parker's wife as a tenant nor did it list wives for any of the other occupants. This may have been a practice of the Directory but it may also indicate that the apartments were more popular with single men. Because they only had one bedroom, married couples, particularly those with children, may have found that the units did not fit their needs. However, it is known that families did live in the one-bedroom apartments in later years. In 1914, Parker sold the apartments and another parcel of property to his wife, Vista Royce Parker, for one dollar. After Parker's death, Vista Parker married W.H. Henderson. The pair sold the apartments to Frankie Lee Youngblood for $50,000 in 1952.

By 1950, the Markeen Apartments had become home to a mix of working, business, and professional class tenants. The City Directory of that year indicated that the residents included a sheet metal worker, a millwright, a salesman for a farm store, a floor finisher, a lawyer, a book keeper, a yardmaster, and a bank teller. The wife of one of the tenants worked as a seamstress at the Dickson-Jenkins sewing factory located in the building immediately north of the apartments. Several other women tenants also worked there during that era. As the decades wore on, the neighborhood began to change and many of the surrounding buildings were torn down. The congregation of Broadway Presbyterian Church constructed a new building further south near the campus of Texas Christian University and the old church was torn down. Broadway Baptist Church has remained in the neighborhood and enlarged its campus but the 1910 church building is not extant. Many of the large residences along Broadway were demolished. Today, the blocks immediately to the east and south of the Markeen Apartments are largely vacant or have been paved for parking. By 1990, there were only a few residents left in the Markeen Apartments. The last resident, Frank Widacki, moved out on December 8, 1999. Widacki had lived in Apartment K since moving there at the age of thirteen with his mother in 1946. The Markeen Apartments currently are undergoing rehabilitation as part of the Investment Tax Credit program. Architectural Significance of the Markeen Apartments As discussed above, the Markeen Apartments are rare surviving examples of apartments buildings constructed in the early years of the 20th century in Fort Worth. Windshield surveys of the west side of downtown and of the Near Southside indicate that the Markeen Apartments are quite possibly the only surviving examples of this free-standing building type from the 1900-1910 era. There are extant free-standing apartment buildings in the Southside that were constructed between ca. 1913 and 1919. These include the two-story four-unit Bridgeman-Hesterly Apartments at 917 Lipscomb Street (ca. 1913), a two-story brick apartment building at 704 S. Jennings Avenue (ca. 1915), the three-story Dunn Haven Apartments at 1228 S. Adams (ca. 1915), and the two-story Reeves Apartments at 1830 Sixth Avenue (ca. 1917). The Southside also has numerous examples of apartments buildings constructed in the 1920s.

There are extant contemporary examples of buildings with commercial space on the first floor with apartments on the upper floors. Two examples of this type of building are located near the Markeen Apartments. The Modern Apartments, constructed in ca.1905 and located at 101 S. Jennings Avenue, is a three-story Commercial Style building. The other is the Bicocchi Building which was constructed in ca. 1909. This two-story Commercial Style building is located at 213 S. Jennings Avenue on the same block as the Markeen Apartments. Both of these buildings have a strong commercial character which was probably influenced by their location on a busy thoroughfare that connected the Southside to downtown. In contrast, the Markeen Apartments have a strong residential feel with their bay windows, gallaried porticos, and metal-tiled parapets that resemble hipped roofs. The Markeen Apartments also are excellent examples of the Prairie School style of architecture as applied to multi-family housing. This style was developed by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright and other Chicago area architects. Examples featured such hallmarks as low-pitched roofs with wide overhanging eaves, two-stories with one-story porches or wings, massive square or rectangular piers of masonry supporting porch roofs, and decorative elements that emphasized horizontal massing. The Markeen Apartments were designed in a vernacular interpretation of the Prairie School style. The two buildings have flat roofs but these are surrounded by a metal-tiled parapet that resembles a hipped roof. Underneath the parapet are wide boxed eaves with widely spaced modillions. The two-tiered porticos are supported by massive brick piers. The use of cast sills, lintels, and caps on the porch piers as well as the wood railings around the porches also enhance the horizontal massing of the buildings. By: Susan Kline Preservation Consultant Fort Worth, Texas