The Pioneer Memorial Library is located at 115 W. Main Street, Fredericksburg,

Gillespie County Gillespie County is a County (United States), county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, its population was 26,725. The county seat is Fredericksburg, Texas, Fredericksburg ...

, in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

. Designed by

Alfred Giles Alfred Giles may refer to: * Alfred Giles (architect) (1853–1920), Texas architect * Alfred Giles (civil engineer) (1816–1895), British civil engineer and politician * Alfred Giles (explorer) (1846–1931), South Australian bushman, drover and ...

, it was built in 1882 to replace the original 1855 courthouse, and was later superseded by the current 1939 courthouse designed by Edward Stein. The first floor houses the Children's Section, while the second floor houses the Adult Section, Texas Room, and newspapers and magazines. It is also called the McDermott Building because of the 1967 and 1984 restorations funded by Mr. & Mrs. Eugene McDermott. It was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1971, and was designated a

Recorded Texas Historic Landmark Recorded Texas Historic Landmark (RTHL) is a designation awarded by the Texas Historical Commission for historically and architecturally significant properties in the U.S. state of Texas. RTHL is a legal designation and the highest honor the sta ...

in 1967.

Construction

The native limestone structure was designed in 1882 by architect

in the

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended to ...

style. Giles also designed the Brooks County Courthouse, Live Oak County Courthouse, Presidio County Courthouse, Webb County Courthouse and Wilson County Courthouse, as well as courthouses in the counties of

Goliad Goliad ( ) is a city in Goliad County, Texas, United States. It is known for the 1836 Goliad massacre during the Texas Revolution. It had a population of 1,620 at the 2020 census. Founded on the San Antonio River, it is the county seat of Gol ...

and

Kerr Kerr may refer to: People *Kerr (surname) *Kerr (given name) Places ;United States *Kerr Township, Champaign County, Illinois *Kerr, Montana, A US census-designated place *Kerr, Ohio, an unincorporated community *Kerr County, Texas Other uses ...

. In 1909, Giles designed the facade of the

Kendall County Courthouse The Kendall County Courthouse is a former courthouse in Yorkville, Illinois, Yorkville, Kendall County, Illinois, Kendall County, Illinois, United States. The original building was completed in 1864 but was later destroyed by fire. A replica of th ...

. He also designed the 1885

Llano County Llano County is a county located on the Edwards Plateau in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 21,243. Its county seat is Llano, and the county is named for the Llano River. During the American Civil War, the c ...

courthouse, which burned down in 1892. On November 28, 1881. Giles was commissioned for $1,000 by the Gillespie County Commissioners. Built of local limestone, the Dietz Quarries supplied the limestone for the main structure, while John Dechert Quarries of

Luckenbach Luckenbach is an ''Ortsgemeinde'' – a community belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'' – in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Geography The village lies northeast of Koblenz in the valley of the Kleine Nister. Luckenbach b ...

supplied the limestone for the trim. Building contractors John Heinen & James A. Courtney erected the structure at a cost of $23,000.

Restoration

When a new courthouse was built in 1939, the old building served a variety of uses, until its state of disrepair forced it to be condemned in 1963. The building was restored in 1967 as a home for the library, a gift from

Texas Instruments Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) is an American technology company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, that designs and manufactures semiconductors and various integrated circuits, which it sells to electronics designers and manufacturers globall ...

founder and Dallas philanthropists Mr. & Mrs.

Eugene McDermott Eugene McDermott (February 12, 1899 in Brooklyn, New York - August 23, 1973 in Dallas, Texas) was an engineer and geophysicist who co-founded Geophysical Service Incorporated (GSI) in 1930 and later its parent company Texas Instruments in 1951. On ...

. Eugene McDermott died in 1973. A second renovation of the library occurred in 1984 with matching funds from Mrs. McDermott and the community.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fredericksburg Memorial Library Library buildings completed in 1882 Buildings and structures in Fredericksburg, Texas County courthouses in Texas Courthouses on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas National Register of Historic Places in Gillespie County, Texas Recorded Texas Historic Landmarks Libraries on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas

Construction

Restoration

See also

References

External links