Sessums-James House
a.k.a. Alexander Sessums--William James House
3802 Spencer, Houston, TXThe Sessums-James House, c. 1894, is an excellent local example of a vernacular L-plan residence with Queen Anne influences. Significant for its size, quality of construction, and detailing, this house yields important architectural and archaeological information about the economic growth and development of Houston's African-American community during the late 19th century. The house was named for its first and second owners, the John Sessums family and the William James family, prominent members of Houston's African-American community. John Sessums was a skilled carpenter and also a founding member and leader of Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church, one of the earliest African-American churches and congregations in Houston. His oldest son, also named John, was one of the earliest, and the only, African-American member of the Houston Light Guard, an elite militia organization founded in 1873 by Houston's most prestigious and prominent political and business leaders. The quality of construction along with the interior and exterior detailing of the house indicate that the Sessums men were closely involved with the construction and architectural characteristics of the house. For its reflection of the economic growth and development of Houston's African American community during the late 19th and early 20th century, and for its associations with John Sessums Jr., the property meets Criteria A and B in the area of Ethnic Heritage (Black) at the local level of significance. As a well-preserved vernacular interpretation of a late 19th-century Queen Anne residence built by an African American, the house also meets Criterion C in the area of Architecture at the local level of significance. Its continual use as a residence, along with the relatively undisturbed condition of the property surrounding the house could reveal information about early African-American building materials and construction techniques, as well as yield crucial insights into residential yard space usage by Houston's early African-American communities, therefore supporting Criterion D in the area of Archeology (Historic: Non-Aboriginal), also at the local level of significance.
Local significance of the building:Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1998.
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.