{"id":458,"featured":0,"modified":"2026-06-09 18:18:01","latitude":30.723883300000000673435351927764713764190673828125,"longitude":-95.5517004999999954861777951009571552276611328125,"title":"Early Huntsville Boarding Houses","subtitle":"","fullsize":"https://easttexashistory.org/files/fullsize/170fccd3e649ca2b96060834b84c35b5.jpg","address":"","all_locations":[],"zoom":18,"creator":["Sarah Ricks"],"description":"By the turn of the century, the founding of the Sam Houston Normal Institute established Huntsville’s reputation as an educational center. However, before the construction of campus residence halls, students, often female, lived primarily in local boarding houses while they pursued teacher training. Not only were these houses integral to the social fabric of early Huntsville, but they also played an important role in the economy. For young women traveling from rural East Texas, living in a home that offered food, lodging, and a supervised social environment made the transition much easier. [1]<br />\r\n<br />\r\nIn 1879, the opening of the Sam Houston Normal Institute attracted hundreds of students to a town lacking the means and infrastructure of a typical college town. Old Main and Austin Hall, the Institute’s first campus buildings, featured classrooms and administrative offices but not student housing. Consequently, private citizens helped meet the demand for student housing near campus by opening their homes as boarding houses, providing essential accommodation for students. [2]<br />\r\n<br />\r\nSome of the most well-known boarding houses include the Gibbs-Powell House, located at 1228 11th, and the Smedes Boarding School for Girls at 1836 Sam Houston Ave. The Gibbs-Powell House was built in the mid-nineteenth century and belonged to the Gibbs family before being transferred to the Powell family. Episcopal minister Alden B. Smedes built the Smedes Boarding School for Girls in the late nineteenth century. Typically, these historic Huntsville buildings functioned effectively as boarding schools because they had multiple bedrooms and dining space and were near the campus. Although Gibbs-Powell has been converted into a museum operated by the Walker County Historical Commission, it remains a significant example of the domestic environment in which early institute students may have lived while completing their studies. [3]<br />\r\n<br />\r\nBoarding houses played not merely a functional role in students’ lives but also helped shape their daily lives and social expectations. Typically, boarding homeowners imposed rules regarding conduct, curfew, and mealtimes, which reassured parents that their children were living in a safe and structured environment. These homes provided a structured environment, a sense of community, and independence for young women from conservative rural families. This allowed them to form friendships, study together, and participate in cultural activities tied to the Institute. Though formal student housing did not exist until the 1930s, these private homes were considered the first dormitories for normal students. As the school expanded and received more donations, dormitories and residence halls appeared on campus, significantly reducing the need for or reliance on private homes. Nevertheless, during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, these houses became an important part of Huntsville’s educational ecosystem. [4]<br />\r\n<br />\r\nBefore the construction of on-campus dormitories and residential halls, boarding houses proved essential to the students of the Normal Institute. Not just a form of housing, these environments also served as social centers where young women could experience independence and community living for the first time. Even though many of these historic buildings no longer serve as student housing, their legacies remain part of Huntsville’s educational history, demonstrating how community and campus life supported each other in shaping Texas teachers. The presence of these houses also had an economic impact on early Huntsville. They generated income for local families by establishing a network of services, including grocery stores, laundromats, and cafes, that supported student life. For these reasons, boarding houses became more than just temporary lodgings; they became part of Huntsville’s identity as a community and learning center in East Texas. [5]<br />","sponsor":null,"accessinfo":"","lede":"","website":"","related_resources":["[1] Walker County Historical Commission – Preserving the past for the future. https://www.walkercountyhistoricalcommission.org/.","[2] Bernadette Pruitt, “Joshua Houston (1822–1902),” BlackPast.org, January 30, 2007, https://blackpast.org/african-american-history/houston-joshua-1822-1902/","[3] John W. Clark, Jr., “Sam Houston House,” Handbook of Texas Online, accessed March 29, 2026, https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/sam-houston-house","[4] “Averyt Boarding House,” The Building of Sam Houston State University, accessed March 29, 2026, https://www.buildingshsu.com/b/boarding_houses/averyt.html"],"factoids":[],"files":{"https://easttexashistory.org/files/fullsize/170fccd3e649ca2b96060834b84c35b5.jpg":{"id":3214,"mime-type":"image/png","title":"The Averyt House","description":"The Averyt House in Huntsville, Texas was a private home that housed students who were attending the Sam Houston Normal Institute during the late nineteenth century. Built in the late 1800s, this house was not only a residence, but also a student boarding house near campus. Since there were no dormitories, it was common for students to live with local families. Monthly board usually cost about $12-$18 and the Averyt House helped support the growing student population in 1879, after the Normal Institute opened.","thumbnail":"https://easttexashistory.org/files/square_thumbnails/170fccd3e649ca2b96060834b84c35b5.jpg"},"https://easttexashistory.org/files/fullsize/24ebad3cc67a878420a2f12ea161483b.jpg":{"id":3215,"mime-type":"image/png","title":"Mrs. Lucy Markham  House Boarding School","description":"The Mrs. Lucy Markham House, located in Huntsville, Texas, served as a boarding house for students attending the Sam Houston Normal Institute in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. It was common for large homes like this one to be converted into boarding houses due to the growing number of students who were traveling to Huntsville for school. Boarding houses provided affordable housing, lodging, meals, and supervision, especially for young women from rural East Texas communities. They provided structure, community, and a sense of independence. Like many others, Mrs. Markham&#039;s became essential parts of Huntsville&#039;s early educational community. ","thumbnail":"https://easttexashistory.org/files/square_thumbnails/24ebad3cc67a878420a2f12ea161483b.jpg"},"https://easttexashistory.org/files/fullsize/09412fc29508b116b7704fb0d606d024.jpg":{"id":3216,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"Joshua Houston Jr. House","description":"The Joshua Houston Jr is a historic home that was Victorian-inspired that was built in 1898 by Joshua Houston Jr. He was the son of community leader, Joshua Houston Sr. This home is located near 13th Street and Avenue N in Huntsville, Texas, and was especially constructed for Joshua Houston Jr and his wife. Originally, this home was surrounded by a picket fence and had two bedrooms, which reflected middle-class residences in late nineteenth century Texas. Behind the house, there was a blacksmith shop, which is where Joshua Houston Jr practiced blacksmithing. Originally, the kitchen and dining area were separate from the main house. ","thumbnail":"https://easttexashistory.org/files/square_thumbnails/09412fc29508b116b7704fb0d606d024.jpg"},"https://easttexashistory.org/files/fullsize/d74754be1cdba95aaf66cc8fafd0ccbe.jpg":{"id":3217,"mime-type":"image/png","title":"The Smedes Boarding School for Girls","description":"The Smedes Boarding School for Girls,  now called the Woodland house, was a private educational institution in Huntsville, Texas that operated in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. This school was founded by Reverend Aldert Smedes and provided young women from across Texas with academic instruction and boarding accommodations. These women lived on campus under supervision of faculty and staff. They received a formal education and training in social etiquette, religion, and domestic skills. This school was a great reflection of emphasizing moral instruction and disciplined learning environments. Smedes contributed greatly to Huntsville&#039;s growing reputation as an education center. ","thumbnail":"https://easttexashistory.org/files/square_thumbnails/d74754be1cdba95aaf66cc8fafd0ccbe.jpg"},"https://easttexashistory.org/files/fullsize/7ae81fefe73cd73a9f3937b2f0ca4bf9.jpg":{"id":3218,"mime-type":"image/jpeg","title":"The Gibbs-Powell House","description":"In 1862, merchant Thomas Phelps Gibbs built a historic two-story Greek home originally named the Gibbs House. The house is symmetrically wood with tall columns and a wide front porch. The ownership of this home was then transferred to the Powell family, giving the name Gibbs-Powell to the house. During the early construction of Sam Houston Normal Institute, this residence served as housing for students when there were no dormitories. Today, the Gibbs-Powell house is preserved as a museum with the Walker County Historical Commission. ","thumbnail":"https://easttexashistory.org/files/square_thumbnails/7ae81fefe73cd73a9f3937b2f0ca4bf9.jpg"}}}