Parker, John W., House
2 Courtlandt Pl., Houston, TXThe John W. Parker House built in 1925-26 was the 17th of 18 houses to be built on Courtlandt Place. Designed by John F. Staub, the house was one of his first design projects in Houston after he started his own firm. The house is a good example of the Cotswold style, one of the historical adaptations from which Staub creatively borrowed. The house is unique in the design along the avenue and reflects the elegance and architectural quality common on Courtlandt Place, one of Houston's earliest and most exclusive subdivisions. John F. Staub, who used a whole range of stylistic genres in this period, was one of Houston's foremost exponents of eclectic architecture. Staub moved to Houston in 1921 to represent the New York architect, J. T. Lindeberg and supervise the construction of three houses he had designed in Shadyside, a residential enclave begun by J. S. Cullinan in 1916. When Lindeberg closed his Houston office in 1923, Staub remained to start his own office. Staub became one of Houston's most famous and popular architects of residential construction in the 20th century. Specializing in domestic architecture, Staub designed most of the houses in the exclusive Shadyside, several in Broadacres, and numerous homes in River Oaks. One of his best-known houses was Bayou Bend in River Oaks, built-in 1926 for Ima Hogg, daughter of the turn-of-the-century governor James Hogg and well-known Houston philanthropist and civic leader. John Staub continued an active architectural practice until his retirement about eight years ago.
John W. Parker was a prominent Houston lawyer. In 1925 he commis- sioned Staub to build a house for his family on Courtlandt Place and lived there until his death in 1930. Mrs. Parker and her child- ren occupied the house for several years and then rented it. In 1951 Thomas George McHale and his wife Inez McHale bought the house. T. George McHale, a local architect, and friend of Staub's, died in 1975, but his widow, an interior designer, continues to live in the house.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.