Eugene T. Heiner

Eugene Thomas Heiner (August 20, 1852 – 1901) was an American architect who designed numerous courthouses, county jails, and other public buildings in Texas. He was born in New York City, apprenticed in Chicago, and studied further in Germany.[1][2][3][4] His works includes buildings listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.[5]

Houston Cotton Exchange

Early life

Eugene Heiner was born on August 20, 1852, in New York City.[1] As a teenager, he studied under an architect in Chicago, before moving to Dallas in 1877. He moved to Texas the next year, where he practiced architecture for the rest of his career.

Career

He won a design competition and earned a commission to design the Galveston County Jailhouse. He also designed the Smith County Jail in 1881 and Gonzales County Jail. In addition to designing many Texas jails over the next two decades, he also designed courthouses in Texas. Three of these, the Colorado County Courthouse, Old Brazoria County Courthouse, and the Lavaca County Courthouse, are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. He is also credited with the design of a building at Texas A & M University in College Station, Texas, and one at the Texas State Penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas.[1]

Heiner executed various commissions in Galveston and Houston. These included the Blum Building (Galveston), the Kaufman and Runge Building (Galveston), and his best known buildings in Houston: the Houston Cotton Exchange, the W. L. Foley Building, and the Sweeney and Coombs Opera House.[1]

Personal life

In 1878, Heiner married Viola Isenhour. The couple had four daughters.[1]

Death and legacy

Heiner died in Houston on April 26, 1901.[1] He is buried at Glenwood Cemetery in Houston. A marker by the Texas State Historical Commission commemorates his work.[6]

Works
Lavaca County Courthouse

Works include:

Old Brazoria County Courthouse
DeWitt County Courthouse
  • De Witt County Courthouse, bounded by N. Gonzales, E. Live Oak, N. Clinton, and E. Courthouse Sts. Cuero, TX (Heiner,Eugene), NRHP-listed[5]
  • Gonzales County Jail, Courthouse Sq. on St. Lawrence St. Gonzales, TX (Heiner,Eugene T.), NRHP-listed[5]
  • One or more works in Gonzales Commercial Historic District, roughly bounded by Water, Saint Andrew, Saint Peter, and Saint Matthew Sts. Gonzales, TX (Heiner, Eugene T.,et al.), NRHP-listed[5]

References
  1. Fox, Stephen (March 7, 2017). "HEINER, EUGENE T." Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved September 9, 2020.
  2. "Eugene Thomas Heiner, the forgotten hero". Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  3. "The Courthouses of Eugene Heiner".
  4. "Eugene T. Heiner, Architect – 254 Texas Courthouses".
  5. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  6. Turner, Suzanne; Wilson, Joanne Seale (2010). Houston's Silent Garden: Glenwood Cemetery, 1878–2009. College Station: Texas A&M University Press. p. 225.
  7. Robinson (1981), p. 124.
  8. Beasley and Fox (1996), p. 30.
  9. "Protected Landmark Designation Report: Sweeney and Coombs Building" (PDF). Houston Archaeologican & Historical Commission. April 14, 2008. Retrieved April 20, 2023.
  10. Beasley and Fox (1996), p. 33.
  11. Beasley and Fox (1996), p. 54.
  12. Robinson (1981), p. 166.
  13. Robinson (1981), p. 155.
  14. Robinson (1981), p. 216.
  15. Robinson (1981), p. 192.

Bibliography
  • Beasley, Ellen; Fox, Stephen. Galveston Architecture Guidebook. Houston: Rice University Press. ISBN 0-89263-346-8.
  • Robinson, Willard B. (1981). Gone from Texas: Our Lost Architectural Heritage. College Station, TX: Texas A&M University Press. ISBN 0-89096-106-9.
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