Samuel May Williams Designer Show House - I

The Samuel May Williams House is getting a new look. Saved by the Galveston Historical Foundation in 1954, when demolition plans called for the house to be replaced with three brick bungalows, the house served as a house museum for many years. Visitors were able to see the home of a family important in early Texas history.

The house has been in continual change since it was built in 1839. Before the 1900 Storm, portions of the porch that sheltered three sides of the house were enclosed. After the Seawall was built, the house remained at its original height and the yard level was brought up approximately six feet. Over the years, lots were sold off and houses were built on Sam's original tract of land. The house faces 35th Street, which was the closest street at the time it was constructed, so the modern approach to the house is from the side.

One obstacle the Samuel May Williams faced as a house museum was its location in the middle of a residential area, and off the beaten path of most tourists. Like many other house museums around the country, declining attendance and mounting repair costs are making groups re-think the next chapter in the life of their properties. In 2007, a committee reviewed the declining attendance numbers and asked "What would be the best use for the house?". The answer was to have it lived in again by a family who would be able to monitor when the house needed repairs. The board of directors of GHF voted to close the Williams House as a museum in the Fall of 2007 and begin planning for upgrades to the kitchen, bathrooms and other areas necessary for a modern family's comfort.

GHF is excited to work with the Gulf Coast Chapter of the American Society of Interior Designers to transform the Williams House into a house that is livable and comfortable to a modern family. We will be posting progress photos of the work on this blog over the next few months.

The 2008 Designer Show House will be open to the public for tours every weekend in May. Please visit http://www.galvestonhistory.org/ for more information or to purchase tickets in the near future to both the Designer Show House as well as the GHF 2008 Historic Homes Tour, which will be held the first two weekends in May.