Hagerty House

Built for William Hagerty, personal engineer for Texas and Pacific Railroad president, George J. Gould, the Hagerty House stands as one of the few examples of Victorian Italianate architecture in Marshall. Thomas Higgins constructed the house in 1889 and employed many skilled craftsmen from the Texas and Pacific Railroad. As a result, the quality of the two-story brick structure is outstanding, and it was one of the finest houses in the prosperous 19th-century town of Marshall. After years of neglect, the building has been restored (except for the front gallery) and has been one of the most important projects in Marshall's preservation movement.

For many reasons, the house was quite unique for the town. Most homes in Marshall during the late 1800's were of wood-framed construction. Lumber was plentiful because of the abundant forest land nearby, and the popular style of that period was the ornate gingerbread detailing. However, the Hagerty house was the first solid brick house in Marshall and the first to display Italianate architecture.

Although the house is significant primarily for its architecture, the history of William P. Hagerty is worthy of note. He was born in Enisthymen, County Clare, Ireland of noble lineage. A zealous member of the Roman Catholic Church, he helped organize a rebellion to free the Irish from England during a period of famine and British oppression. Charged with attempting to overthrow the government, Hagerty fled for his life when the rebellion failed. He successfully evaded British soldiers and boarded a ship bound for New York.

Arriving in the U.S. in 1862, Hagerty eventually settled in Philadelphia where relatives had already established themselves. He became a reporter for the Philadelphia Record in 1864 and developed a close friendship with the publisher, John O'Dwyer, who later published a booklet on Hagerty's life. While working on the Record, Hagerty was intrigued by a Texas and Pacific Railroad employment advertisement. He joined the railroad, trained as an engineer and in 1876 moved to Marshall, the eastern terminus of the T&P Railroad. Hagerty was quite successful in his career and soon became the personal engineer for George J. Gould, the president of the company.

While in Marshall, he met and married Mollie Allbright. The parents of five children, William and Mollie Hagerty were devout members of St. Joseph Catholic Church. In 1889 they decided to build a new home. Wishing to be near the church and parochial school, they bought land adjacent to the school and later that year, moved into to the newly completed two-story house.

While en route to New Orleans in 1906, Hagerty was killed in a train accident. His wife died a year later, but the house remained in the possession of their children. In 1967 the house was vacated and soon. began to deteriorate. Because of its dilapidated condition, the old structure was an eyesore and many of the townspeople wanted to demolish it. However, in 1972, a prominent local physician, Dr. James Harris purchased the building from Joseph Hagerty, one of William Hagerty's sons. Initiating a restoration program, Harris soon sold the house to his son Dr. Rush Harris who has continued work on the house.