In December 2007, the Galveston Historical Foundation entered into a management agreement with the Houston-Galveston Catholic Diocese for the Bishop's Palace, on of the most visited sites in the city. Since then, GHF has worked hard to assess the needs of the building and ways of attaining funding for restoration.
Jim Hauser, from Willet-Hauser Architectural Glass Studios, recently gave a talk at St. Joseph's Church building on inspecting and protecting stained glass windows from storms and the elements. After the talk, he performed free inspections of windows at local churches and residences, one of those being the Bishop's Palace. During this inspection, he discovered the signature of the maker in one of the chapel windows, which were installed after the Catholic Diocese purchased the house from the Walter Gresham Family in 1923. The chapel windows were created by Dr. Heinrich Oidtmann III from Lynnich (Linnich), Germany in 1928. This is the oldest stained glass studio in Germany (founded in 1857). The detailing on the faces of the saints is very fine and was painted on with brushes and needles.
For hours and ticket information: http://www.galvestonhistory.org/1892_Bishops_Palace1.asp
