National Register Listing

Simon Building

a.k.a. The Bakery

124-126 W. Hopkins St., San Marcos, TX

Especially in the part of the interior, the Simon Building is still strongly reminiscent of the days when it was a major local service industry, a bakery. The low parapet walls and brick detail of its front facade are typical of the 1920s, and add a grace note to the western region of the downtown square.

Alex Simon, from nearby Kyle, erected the structure in 1923 for his family business. He had previously built his bakery in Hubbard City and had owned another San Marcos bakery on (then) Austin Street. The Simon: Bakery was inordinately successful. It operated as a separate bakery until 1980 when it was sold to the present owners who also run a full-service bakery. Alex had worked in the building for sixty years when he retired.

During the building's life, it was expanded twice. Shortly after 1930, a second floor was added to the western portion. Apartments for the growing families (children were Alvin, Benno, and Minnie) occupied these spaces. Following the purchase of the land in 1945, Simon built a one-story garage addition on the west to house his fleet of trucks, some of which served nearby Camp Gary during World War II.

Because of the large output, the Simon Bakery used two commercial ovens. The third, dating from 1945, is still in use, although the reduced production requires only a fraction of its capacity.

At one point, the bakery occupied the entire lower floor of the building. The space is now shared with a toy store to the bakery's right and an interior decorator's shop in the rear where flour was stored. The Bakery occupies the area where Simon began his business. With its use of old equipment, furnishings, and decoration, it maintains the atmosphere of one of the town's longest-lived establishments.

Local significance of the building:
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1983.