The Link–Lee House is a large historic home located in Montrose in central Houston , Harris County , in the U.S. state of Texas . It is currently serving as the executive office of the University of St. Thomas . It was added to the National Register of Historic Places listings in Harris County, Texas in 2000, and became a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 2001.
20-621: The Link–Lee House is named for John Wiley Link and Thomas Peter Lee , its first owners. The house is located at the corner of Montrose Boulevard and West Alabama Street, now on the University of St. Thomas campus in Houston. A monumental portico fronts the neoclassical building , which is clad in brick with terra cotta ornamentation. John Wiley Link (1866–1933) was born in Gallatin, Texas. He completed his law studies at Baylor University , and joined
40-608: The Kentucky Derby . Irish bred Rounders won several top races in the United States including the 1942 Arlington Handicap in which he beat the great Triple Crown champion, Whirlaway . For his contributions to the industry, the Texas Horse Racing Hall of Fame inducted him as a member in 2001. Emerson and his wife were also recognized for their philanthropic accomplishments. According to Jack Meyer, their pastor at
60-620: The National Trapshooting Hall of Fame , which inducted him on August 24, 1973, and in the Texas Trapshooters Association Hall of Fame , which reciprocated in 1983. One of his records "in 1933 … set a yearly ATA ( American Trapshooters Association ) 16-yard average record of .9950 that was not broken or tied until 1965, some thirty-two years later. After the Yount-Lee sale, Emerson Woodward announced, "Well, I sold
80-776: The Heights Church of Christ in Houston, "They financed an orphanage in Hope, Arkansas …, built the Church of Christ at College Station, contributed heavily to the Boles Orphans home at Quinlan, Texas . They sent many girls through the Abilene Christian College , paying all their expenses." An automobile driven by Woodward collided into the side of a train at a grade crossing near D'Hanis, Texas , close to Hondo in Medina County, and
100-496: The Houston Land Corporation while amassing several properties totaling 250 acres near the Houston city limits. He set aside a strip land on which he built the first section of Montrose Boulevard, the main street for his upscale residential subdivision. He planned his own home site on Block 41, fronting the newly paved Montrose Boulevard and West Alabama Street. Sanguinet, Staats, and Barnes designed this Link's home, which
120-591: The Link-Lee Mansion, and its surrounding land, became the main building of the University of St. Thomas, which still occupies the site today. Originally the building housed the entire university, it now contains the executive offices of the university. While still mostly intact, the mansion has been adapted to accommodate the offices of the president, vice president for Academic Affairs, Dean of Arts and Sciences, vice president for Institutional Advancement, and Alumni Relations. The surrounding patio, porch, and yard of
140-632: The Oil Fields of Texas to Spindletop Farm of Kentucky . Austin: Eakin Press, 2005. Emerson Francis Woodward Emerson Francis Woodward (February 23, 1879 – May 24, 1943) was an oilman who co-founded the Yount-Lee Oil Company which made a major discovery at the Spindletop field near Beaumont, Texas . In 1935, Woodward and partners sold the company to Standard Oil & Gas for $ 46 million. He
160-539: The Texas bar in 1888. He practiced law in Amarillo and Orange , where he was elected mayor in 1905. Link accumulated wealth through the lumber business and finance in east Texas. In 1910, he moved to Houston where he anticipated economic growth sparked by its emerging oil industry. In addition to being the founding chairman of The American General Insurance Company and the second president of The Dr. Pepper Company, he established
180-508: The country. Called by The New York Times as "one of the largest and most famous racing stables of its time," under trainer Frank Catrone these Thoroughbreds competed head to head with some of the best the American racing world had to offer. Valdina Myth was the 1940 two-year-old-fillies earnings Champion and the 1941 Kentucky Oaks winner. Valdina Orphan, with jockey Carroll Bierman aboard, won 1942 Derby Trial Stakes then ran third in
200-549: The formation of the Yount-Lee Oil Company , Woodward eventually became one of its largest stockholders. Emerson Woodward, in January 1924, advanced $ 28,000 to build the Houston Gun Club on Westheimer Road, and he actively participated in his favorite hobby of trapshooting in the company of friends such as Hank A. Hausmann of LaGrange, Texas and Forest McNeir, a fellow Houstonian. His expert marksmanship earned for him places in
220-496: The industry in various other states, including Oklahoma , Ohio , Arkansas , Louisiana , and Texas . He married Bessie McGarry in 1901 at her hometown of Woodsfield, Ohio. The couple had only one child, a son, Harley E. Woodward, who died at age 34 when the private plane he was in crashed into Rich Mountain , Arkansas . The Producers Oil Company employed Emerson Woodward for eleven years, and during this stretch, he met his lifelong associate, Thomas Peter Lee , who worked for
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#1733094026219240-505: The last of my oil interests today. I've got nothing to do but fool with horses." He kept his word, retired from the oil business and spent much of his time occupied with the sport of the kings . During the late 1930s and early 1940s, on his ranch, Valdina Farms , spanning 18,127 acres (73.36 km ) located in both Uvalde and Medina Counties in Texas, hence the name Valdina, he raised, trained, and sent his horses such as Valdina Myth , Valdina Orphan , and Rounders to racetracks all over
260-498: The mansion was utilized each October as part of Neewollah , the university's Halloween party. This tradition ended in 2006 with the construction of the Edward P. White Memorial Plaza, which feature a large granite monolith and fountain. The plaza is the last design of famous architect Philip Johnson . Future plans involve moving the offices out of the mansion and restoring it back to how it looked in 1912. These plans are contingent upon
280-559: The newly formed Texas Company, which eventually became Texaco , and when he left that organization ten years later, he had attained the rank of general superintendent of production. While there, however, he became friends with J.S. Cullinan , and the two, along with Emerson Francis Woodward , Will C. Hogg , and James L. Autry , joined in 1914 to form the Farmers Petroleum Company , of which Lee became president. McKinley, Fred B., and Greg Riley. Black Gold to Bluegrass: From
300-510: The property to the University of St. Thomas for $ 120,000. At the wishes of all heirs and executors, the college separated the payment into two parts: $ 6,000 in cash and the remaining $ 114,000 as a donation, guaranteed by a promissory note dated September 1, 1946, made payable to the William M. Rice Institute for the Advancement of Literature, Science and Art in Houston. The home, now referred to as
320-491: The same firm. Woodward advanced quickly within the organization and received a promotion to assistant superintendent of its southern division, which encompassed the area from New Orleans to El Paso . Later, he helped organize the Farmers Petroleum Company , held the position of superintendent, and in 1921 became president of the Republic Production Company , a subsidiary of American Republics Corporation . With
340-529: The university purchasing adjacent properties prior to making any such moves. Thomas Peter Lee Thomas Peter Lee was born on March 19, 1871, in Petroleum, West Virginia to Alexander and Martha Jane Mount Lee, Thomas Peter Lee left school at the age of sixteen and went to work in the oil fields , first in his native state and then in Ohio . In 1903 he moved to Saratoga, Texas , where he gained employment with
360-550: Was born at Podunk, New York to William W. and Ida May LaGrange Woodward. Because his father made his living in the oil business in its earliest days at Titusville, Pennsylvania , Emerson wanted to follow in his footsteps. After receiving an early education in the Goodwill Hill public schools in Pennsylvania, Woodward, at the age of eleven, went to work in the oil fields, and before the end of his career, he would be affiliated with
380-486: Was built by Young Contracting Company in 1912. Thomas Peter Lee (born March 19, 1871) started as an oil field worker in his native West Virginia and Ohio. Just sixteen when he started work, he relocated to Saratoga, Texas in 1903 to work for the Texas Company . In 1914, he co-founded Farmers Petroleum Company and accepted a post as the firm's president. Lee acquired the house at the end of 1916 for $ 90,000. Link–Lee House
400-412: Was the largest single-family residence in Houston at the time with over 10,000 square feet. The main floor included a breakfast room, formal dining room, and music room. There was a full basement, a second floor with five bedroom suites, and a third floor ballroom. After Lee's death, his home remained in the possession of his family until July 9, 1940, when family members, including Mrs. Essie N. Lee, sold
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