Praeger Building

The Praeger Building at 110 W. Corpus Christi Street is arguably the best surviving example of an early twentieth-century commercial structure in Beeville. The building is distinguished by round-arched second-floor windows, polychromatic brickwork, and an unusual wrap-around awning with Ionic columns. The building was erected in 1906 by Albert Praeger, and the architect is believed to be W.C. Stevenson, who designed several structures in the city. Over the years, the Praeger Building has been occupied by a number of different tenants and has been moderately altered. Recently, the structure was sold, and most of the less sympathetic alterations have been corrected, thus restoring the building to its original character.

The Praeger Building stands in Beeville's commercial center and faces south onto the courthouse square. Although a number of similar periods commercial structures stand nearby, the Praeger Building is one of the very few historic buildings in the downtown area which exhibits much of its original character. As a buff brick, eclectic, turn-of-the-century structure, it complements the adjacent Bee County Courthouse to an unusual degree and is perhaps the most striking commercial building on the courthouse square.

Albert Praeger was born in Victoria, Texas on May 6, 1864, but moved to San Antonio when sixteen years old. His father owned and operated the Praeger Hardware Store on Commerce Street, and Albert gained valuable business experience working for his father. When only twenty-two, Albert moved to Beeville and opened his own hardware store and tin shop. In 1906, he bought the property at the northeast corner of Corpus Christi and Washington Streets and decided to erect a large commercial building to house his thriving business. Praeger operated the store in the new building with the help of his son, Albert, Jr., and Sam Mitchell until his retirement in 1925. At this time, the top floor, which had been used for storage, was converted into apartments, and Mitchell continued to run the store. Praeger died in 1930, and when the Praeger Store went out of business in 1943, his wife rented the building to Roberts and McKenzie Hardware Store. Roberts and McKenzie's business relocated a few years later, and the Praeger Building has since been occupied by other stores. In 1979, the present owner, Dr. Joseph Barnhart, bought the building and has begun a restoration/adaptive reuse program for the building. It will be used as commercial space on the first floor and apartment units upstairs.