Sebastopol House Historic Site is an antebellumGreek Revival house built of concrete, located in Seguin, Texas, United States. Joshua W. Young built it between 1854 and 1856 for his sister, Catherine LeGette.[2] Today Sebastopol is one of some 20 surviving buildings that give Seguin the largest concentration of early 19th century structures in the U.S.[3]
As a result of its unusual concrete construction, Sebastopol House was included in the Historic American Buildings Survey (H.A.B.S.) in 1936, made a Registered Texas Historical Landmark in 1964, and then listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 25, 1970. It is a prime example of the limecrete structures of Seguin. The house is constructed entirely of unreinforced cast-in-place concrete and it is one of the oldest and largest structures in the state using this building method.[4]
This process was developed and patented by doctor and chemist John Park, who had moved to Seguin in 1846. But he soon had imitators and competitors, contractors like Joshua Young. Often slaves did the hard physical work, using boards to build forms, kept at the right width (12 to 18 inches) by screws and oak spacers when the limecrete mixture was poured into the forms, and allowed to harden. Then the forms were raised another foot or so and the process repeated.[3]
A large part of the "Park's concrete" mix was caliche, a thick deposit of gravelly clay that underlies Seguin. Usually the caliche was dug out on site, providing a basement level, as at Sebastopol. The caliche was then mixed with sand, lime made from nearby limestone deposits, and organic materials like straw or horsehair. The exterior walls were usually whitewashed, and the interiors often had woodwork or wainscoting of local walnut, oak or pecan.[5]
Joseph Zorn Jr. bought the house in 1874 and it remained in the Zorn family until 1961. Zorn was mayor of Seguin from 1890 to 1910, and played a major role in establishing the first system of free public schools in the town.[6]
The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department acquired the house and grounds by purchase in 1976 from the Seguin Conservation Society, which by agreement had preserved the house until the state agency could get funds for the restoration in its budget. Sebastopol was again opened to the public in September 1989. The house is restored to its 1880s appearance. In 2011 ownership was transferred to the City of Seguin.
^Jones, Betty J. (1970), Joshua and the House He Built, Unpublished M.A. thesis, Southwest Texas State University, p. 24
^ abHauser, Vincent (1980), The Concrete Era of Seguin Texas, pp. 54, 60
^Colonel Joshua Young House, Washington, D.C.: Historic American Buildings Survey National Park Service, 1934
^Maxon, Peter, Sebastopol Architectural Narrative, Austin, Texas: Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife, Historical Sites Branch
^Weinert, Willie Mae (1951), An Authentic History of Guadalupe County, Seguin, Texas: The Seguin Enterprise
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City of Seguin, Texas: Sebastopol House
December 04, 2023
sebastopol, house, historic, site, antebellum, greek, revival, house, built, concrete, located, seguin, texas, united, states, joshua, young, built, between, 1854, 1856, sister, catherine, legette, today, sebastopol, some, surviving, buildings, that, give, seg. Sebastopol House Historic Site is an antebellum Greek Revival house built of concrete located in Seguin Texas United States Joshua W Young built it between 1854 and 1856 for his sister Catherine LeGette 2 Today Sebastopol is one of some 20 surviving buildings that give Seguin the largest concentration of early 19th century structures in the U S 3 SebastopolU S National Register of Historic PlacesFormer Texas State Historic SiteTexas State Antiquities LandmarkRecorded Texas Historic LandmarkSebastopol House Historic Site in 2008SebastopolShow map of TexasSebastopolShow map of the United StatesLocation704 Zorn Street Seguin Texas USACoordinates29 34 9 N 97 58 21 W 29 56917 N 97 97250 W 29 56917 97 97250Area2 2 acres 0 89 ha Built1850 1850 ArchitectHenry Erkel et al Architectural styleGreek RevivalNRHP reference No 70000751 1 TSAL No 301RTHL No 4627Significant datesAdded to NRHPAugust 25 1970Designated TSHS1989Designated TSALJune 28 1983Designated RTHL1964Delisted TSHS2011As a result of its unusual concrete construction Sebastopol House was included in the Historic American Buildings Survey H A B S in 1936 made a Registered Texas Historical Landmark in 1964 and then listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 25 1970 It is a prime example of the limecrete structures of Seguin The house is constructed entirely of unreinforced cast in place concrete and it is one of the oldest and largest structures in the state using this building method 4 This process was developed and patented by doctor and chemist John Park who had moved to Seguin in 1846 But he soon had imitators and competitors contractors like Joshua Young Often slaves did the hard physical work using boards to build forms kept at the right width 12 to 18 inches by screws and oak spacers when the limecrete mixture was poured into the forms and allowed to harden Then the forms were raised another foot or so and the process repeated 3 A large part of the Park s concrete mix was caliche a thick deposit of gravelly clay that underlies Seguin Usually the caliche was dug out on site providing a basement level as at Sebastopol The caliche was then mixed with sand lime made from nearby limestone deposits and organic materials like straw or horsehair The exterior walls were usually whitewashed and the interiors often had woodwork or wainscoting of local walnut oak or pecan 5 Joseph Zorn Jr bought the house in 1874 and it remained in the Zorn family until 1961 Zorn was mayor of Seguin from 1890 to 1910 and played a major role in establishing the first system of free public schools in the town 6 The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department acquired the house and grounds by purchase in 1976 from the Seguin Conservation Society which by agreement had preserved the house until the state agency could get funds for the restoration in its budget Sebastopol was again opened to the public in September 1989 The house is restored to its 1880s appearance In 2011 ownership was transferred to the City of Seguin See also edit nbsp National Register of Historic Places portal nbsp Texas portalNational Register of Historic Places listings in Guadalupe County Texas Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks in Guadalupe CountyReferences edit National Register Information System National Register of Historic Places National Park Service July 9 2010 Jones Betty J 1970 Joshua and the House He Built Unpublished M A thesis Southwest Texas State University p 24 a b Hauser Vincent 1980 The Concrete Era of Seguin Texas pp 54 60 Colonel Joshua Young House Washington D C Historic American Buildings Survey National Park Service 1934 Maxon Peter Sebastopol Architectural Narrative Austin Texas Texas Department of Parks and Wildlife Historical Sites Branch Weinert Willie Mae 1951 An Authentic History of Guadalupe County Seguin Texas The Seguin EnterpriseExternal links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sebastopol House Historic Site City of Seguin Texas Sebastopol House Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Sebastopol House Historic Site amp oldid 1183556357, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
