2022 Mansfield Historic Landmark Commission Annual Report

Mansfield Historic Landmark Commission

ANNUAL REPORT

October 2022

COMMISSIONERS

DR. ROBERT SMITH Chair

LITTLEFIELD Vice-Chair

ALLAN HUDSON

BOB KLENZENDORF

AMANDA KOWALSKI

TOM LEACH

WALKER

CITY STAFF

JASON ALEXANDER Director of Planning

ARTY WHEATON-RODRIGUEZ Assistant Director of Planning

ART WRIGHT

Senior Planner & Historic Preservation Officer

JENNIFER JOHNSTON Development Coordinator

Cover photographs from top to bottom: Traders Day, 1907; modern view of Main Street, 2022; historic buildings on Main Street, 2022; and the same buildings in 1928.

Historic photographs courtesy of the Mansfield Historical Society.

WHO WE ARE

The Historic Landmark Commission was created in 1988 by Ordinance No. 782. There are seven regular members, all residents of Mansfield, who volunteer their time. The Commissioners are appointed by the City Council for two-year terms. The Commission meets on the second Thursday of each month at City Hall. The meetings are open to the public. The Commission invites all interested citizens to attend.

WHAT WE DO

The job of the Historic Landmark Commission is to promote the preservation of Mansfield’s heritage through official recognition, recording, and preserving the historic resources of City. The Commission also recommends historic buildings and properties for local historic landmark designation to the City Council, administers the Preservation Plan, reviews proposed exterior alterations to a designated historic landmark and recommends incentives to encourage the preservation of our historic resources.

VISION STATEMENT

The Commission’s vision statement sets out the guiding principle of its work: “The Historic Landmark Commission exists to preserve the past and educate the public on the uniqueness of Mansfield.”

OUR COMMITMENT

Mansfield has seen tremendous growth in recent years, sometimes with the loss of our historic resources. The Historic Landmark Commission is committed to the preservation of Mansfield’s heritage, that of the rural community it once was and the modern city that it has become. The review requirements of the preservation ordinance are one of the best forms of protection for the historic buildings that tell our city’s story.

CERTIFIED LOCAL GOVERNMENT

Mansfield is one of only 77 cities and counties in Texas to qualify as a Certified Local Government (CLG) by the Texas Historical Commission (THC). As a member of the CLG program, Mansfield has access to CLG grants, technical assistance, training opportunities, and the experience and knowledge of the other participating CLG communities. In exchange, the Commission must honor a commitment to maintain a strong local preservation program. The Commission reports to the THC each year on the progress of Mansfield’s preservation program to maintain CLG status.

Message from the Chair

It is my privilege once again to introduce the Annual Report for the City of Mansfield’s Historic Landmark Commission.

We have seen many achievements for the City of Mansfield, its citizens, and historic preservation since our last report. This year the City began offering tax incentives to owners who make improvements to historic landmarks. Grant money may also be available to protected buildings whose owners seek to make improvements and/or repairs. These financial incentives will help the property owners to revitalize their properties for the long-term betterment of the city and citizens. By preserving these resources, future generations will see and understand the history of Mansfield.

One of the most outstanding accomplishments we facilitated was to bring both of Mansfield’s historic cemeteries into one Historic Overlay District. While the two cemeteries remain separate in ownership, this cooperative designation allows the community to recognize all of Mansfield residents from past years and celebrate the unity. The designation of this District is one of the things of which I am most proud.

Historic Preservation Month was again a successful event. Led by our vice-Chairman David Littlefield and Commissioners Mark Walker and Tom Leach, more citizens participated in our many events this year than in prior years. This team of dedicated Commissioners is already working hard to make the 2023 event even bigger and better.

The HLC recognized 13 historic properties at the May Preservation Day event, and we surprised one couple when they learned that they own a historic property. They immediately applied for historic overlay protection. That was a win for all of us.

I invite anyone who owns a property that may be eligible to apply for historic overlay protection so that you can take advantage of the benefits available.

Historic preservation is about so much more than old buildings and stories. It is the thread that binds us together through the years, true, but it is also a driver of economic development, increased sales tax revenue, and a way to move older neighborhoods from decay to vigorous growth. Historic preservation is good for all of us.

In conclusion, I would like to thank the city staff, Art Wright, Jennifer Johnston, and the City Council for working diligently to preserve the heritage of Mansfield for current and future citizens. As always, serving with these fine people is a highlight.

Robert A. Smith, O.D., Chairman Historic Landmark Commission

Historic Preservation Month shares Mansfield’s heritage

Coordinated by the Commission’s Preservation Month Subcommittee and with the help of staff and volunteers, Mansfield hosted several preservation events to showcase our city’s unique history during May 2022.

\May events were held downtown at the Mansfield Historical Museum and Heritage Center, the Man House Museum and the Mansfield Library.

Some of the highlights include:

• MISD students participated in a Historic Poster Contest with the winning entries displayed at the Library.

• Guided walking tours of Historic Mansfield were offered each weekend in May.

• Live demonstrations of life in the 1800s were presented at the Man House Museum.

• The Historic Recognition Day ceremony was held at the Mansfield Historical Museum on May 8 to honor the owners of 15 Officially Recognized historic properties.

Below: City Council proclaims Historic Preservation Month 2022

Right, from top to bottom: participants learn how to quilt at the Man House Museum; Historic Downtown walking tours; entries from the MISD Historic Poster Contest displayed at the Mansfield Library; participants learn how to make oral histories in the History How To session at the Mansfield Historical Museum and Heritage Center.

Preservation in 2021-2022

DESIGN GUIDELINES FOR HISTORIC MANSFIELD

The Commission began revising the Design Guidelines for Downtown Mansfield. The current guidelines were adopted in 1991 and there have been many changes over the last 31 years. The current guidelines do not take new preservation techniques into account. This leads to discrepancies between the guidelines and the desired outcomes for preservation projects. The Commission anticipates that the revisions will be completed by year’s end.

DOWNTOWNTX.ORG

In cooperation with the Downtown Coordinator, staff and volunteers have been providing data to DowntownTX. org, an online building inventory for Texas downtowns featuring historic property listings. The program, sponsored by the Texas Historical Commission, attracts communityminded entrepreneurs and investors

who value historic architecture and appreciate the special qualities of historic places. The program also serves as a complete inventory with historic building information, history lovers and old building enthusiasts are welcome just to browse as well.

YOUTH OUTREACH

The Commission released the Mansfield History Hunters children’s activity booklet at Kids Day during Arts Week. The booklet is designed to introduce youth to the City’s heritage and culture through activities like coloring and word puzzles and fun facts about historic Mansfield.

RECOGNIZED PROPERTIES

The Commission designated 13 new properties in the historic downtown as Officially Recognized Historic Resources. The Commission honored the owners of the properties at Historic Recognition Day on May 14, 2022.

Left, The Commission’s outreach table at Kids Day during Arts Week. Top center, Dr. Robert Smith, HLC Chair, presents a certificate to Pastor Michael Evans designating the Mansfield Community Cemetery as an Officially Recognized Historic Resource.

PRESERVATION PROGRAMS

HISTORIC MANSFIELD FAÇADE GRANTS

The goal of the Historic Mansfield Façade Grant Program is to preserve the City’s cultural heritage through the preservation, restoration, rehabilitation and/or reconstruction of historic buildings. When funded, grants are offered to the owners of eligible historic buildings to assist with exterior restoration work. The grant program began in 2018.

HISTORIC PRESERVATION TAX EXEMPTION

Maintaining a historic building can be expensive. The Historic Preservation Tax Exemption program is designed to support historic preservation by providing tax relief to property owners for the repair, restoration and maintenance of their historic structures. The program offers three levels of exemption: 1) by receiving a Historic Landmark designation; 2) for exterior work over $5,000 for historic residential structures; and 3) for exterior work over $5,000 for historic commercial structures.

OFFICIAL RECOGNITION PROGRAM

Not every historic property owner wants a Historic Landmark designation. The Official Recognition program allows the Commission to honor the owners of historic properties without landmark designation. Officially Recognized properties are not designated landmarks and the owners are not obligated to comply with the design guidelines or seek approval from the Commission for changes to the property. Official Recognition is designed to promote awareness of the need for preservation among the owners of historic properties and may encourage owners to apply for landmark status.

HISTORIC MARKER PROGRAM

It’s easy to recognize a local Mansfield landmark. The City offers the owners of landmark properties a distinctive medallion featuring the Man and Feild Mill. You will find these markers on many of the historic houses and buildings downtown.

HISTORY UNDER COVER

Mahoney Building restoration exposes 1890 bricks

Those who have seen the Dennis Mahoney Building probably know it best as Troy Dorsey’s former martial arts studio. The building, with its red stucco upper wall, sits near the middle of the 100 block of North Main Street.

The 1890 Mahoney Building, probably the oldest commercial structure in Mansfield, has a new owner, BCB Transport Holdings, Co. To honor the building’s heritage, BCB started a substantial storefront restoration in August 2022 to bring back elements of the building’s original appearance.

Originally brick with ornamental detailing, the front wall was covered in stucco in the late 1940s or early 1950s. The old stucco was removed to evaluate the condition of the wall, exposing the brick for the first time in nearly 70 years.

In the Fort Worth Weekly Gazette newspaper for November 6, 1890, it was reported that, “D. Mahoney of Corpus Christi broke dirt to-day for a mammoth brick building 55x80.” There are no

records indicating that the building was occupied by Mr. Mahoney or what the commercial use was until 1895. In 1895, the building was occupied by A. J. Dukes and Henderson Poe as a hardware store on one side of the building. Marple Drug Store leased the other half.

BCB is renovating the building to serve as a podcast studio for BCB Live, featuring content for the trucking industry, and offices. BCB purchased the building from Mr. Dorsey, whose martial arts studio has been at this location since 1999.

The storefront plans call for display and transom windows, new doors and a new awning. The changes will enhance the historic character of the Mahoney Building. As a city landmark, the restoration plans were approved by the Historic Landmark Commission in June 2022.

BCB would like to keep the brick exposed, but if their condition is poor, the bricks may need to be covered with stucco once more.

The Mahoney Building changes over time

Left column, from top to bottom: Troy Dorsey Karate, 2022; Mansfield Hardware c. 1950; Harrison Hardware, 1905; Dukes and Poe Hardware, c. 1900, after a fire that destroyed some of the adjacent buildings.

Right column, from top to bottom: Western Auto during the 1980s (note that the display windows have been modernized); Harrison Hardware, 1928 (note the transom windows are still in place from 1900 through 2022, although covered up in the 1980s); a close-up photograph of the exposed brick in 2022 showing the decorative pattern. The pattern can be seen in the 1900 and 1905 photographs.

Two cemeteries, one special place

Mansfield’s first historic district

Cemeteries are important landmarks in Mansfield and include both large, highly visible burial grounds and small family cemeteries containing just a few graves. Two of the most important cemeteries can be found on the west side of the Original Town, the Mansfield Cemetery and the Mansfield Community Cemetery.

The two cemeteries have come together to seek designation as a Historic District. A Historic District is an area that has a special character or special historical or cultural interest or value and includes two or more properties. This designation will be the City’s first district containing more than one historic property.

Both cemeteries derive their primary significance from graves of persons of importance, from age, from distinctive design features or from associations with historic events, such as pioneer settlement. Under the new historic district, the cemeteries will continue to be separate historic burial grounds under their respective cemetery associations, but the shared district will allow the associations to cooperate on historic preservation projects.

Approval of the historic district is expected in October 2022.

Mansfield Cemetery

Ralph Man deeded the land for the 2.75-acre Cumberland section in 1874 to the Mansfield congregation of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, but the land was first used for internment in 1868, when Julia Alice Boisseau Man, wife of Ralph S. Man and sister-in-law of Julian Feild, Mansfield’s co-founders, was buried.

Inventories in 1950 and 1980 record 819 grave markers, but there also are large numbers of unmarked graves. Markers are typically granite, limestone and marble. Several Civil War, World War I and World War II veterans are buried in the

Mansfield Cemetery and the influenza outbreak at the end of World War I added many Mansfield residents to the cemetery. Many of Mansfield’s early settlers and community leaders are buried in the Cumberland section, including Ralph Man.

Mansfield Community Cemetery

Adjacent to the Cumberland section is the 1.32acre Mansfield Community Cemetery, formerly the “Colored” Cemetery. Fifteen of the 83 marked graves could be descendants of Nathan Moody, an enslaved worker of Captain Thomas O. Moody, a Confederate officer, buried in the Cumberland section. Veterans of both World Wars are also buried in the Mansfield Community Cemetery.

Markers in the Mansfield Community Cemetery are often less elaborate and included stones, shells and other folk art arrangements. A fence that separated the white and black sections has since been removed. It is believed that Ralph Man donated the land, since this portion of the city was part of his 246-acre farm, which remained occupied by the Man family until 1942. Maintenance of the cemetery is a community effort led by Bethlehem Baptist Church.

Headstone of Julia Alice Boisseau Man, 1868, the earliest marked burial in the Mansfield Cemetery

HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION GOALS FOR 2022 - 2023

The Commission’s annual preservation goals guide its work for the upcoming year. These goals supplement the Mansfield Preservation Plan and represent the most immediate needs of the preservation program.

1) Identify and prioritize Mansfield’s historic resources.

• Work with the Tarrant County Historic Preservation Commission on updating the Historic Resources Survey as part of a county-wide effort

• Expand on the windshield surveys taken by the Volunteer Program and HPAB.

• Request funding from City Council for a formal Downtown Historic Resource Survey in conjunction with a CLG grant

• Integrate survey information into the City’s Geographic Information System (GIS).

2) Develop incentives for historic preservation in conjunction with the City Council.

• Formulate a proposal for incentives such as tax abatements, low-interest loans, and grants to promote the restoration, rehabilitation and reuse of historic resources and discourage the demolition of these resources.

• Request a joint work session with the

Downtown Revitalization Subcommittee and City Council to discuss the historic preservation program.

3) Promote the work of the Historic Landmark Commission.

• Produce an annual report of the Commission’s activities to educate the public on the Commission’s role and the need for historic preservation.

• Keep other City departments and boards abreast of the Commission’s policies and actions so they may act in a mutually supportive fashion.

• Seek recognition for the City’s preservation efforts through programs such as Preserve America.

4) Increase the Commission’s public engagement programs.

• Promote events to celebrate Historic Preservation Month.

• Inform owners of historic properties of the benefits and incentives for becoming a designated historic landmark.

• Work with the Museum on educational programs for adults and youth to connect them with Mansfield’s history.

• Support a heritage tourism program.

MANSFIELD’S ENDANGERED HISTORIC PLACES 2022

Historic preservation in Mansfield is voluntary, which means only properties with a Historic Landmark designation are protected under the City’s preservation ordinance. Without the protection of a landmark designation, many of our historic buildings have suffered incompatible alterations, demolition, or neglect.

The following are historic resources or historic districts that are in danger of being lost or were demolished in 2022.

DEMOLISHED:

• A demolition permit has been issued for the Holland House at 2880 Matlock Road.

ENDANGERED: Historic Downtown Mansfield Historic resources throughout the Original Town are threatened by neglect, demolition or alteration. These include:

• The 1900 McKnight Building, in need of brick and mortar repairs.

• The 1904 Buttrill-Nifong-Barnett House, new exterior damage, particularly the roof, columns and porches.

• The 1895 McKnight Building, in need of foundation and brick and mortar repairs. The City is seeking a contractor to repair the foundation.

• Older houses on 1st, 2nd and 3rd Avenues, Elm Street, West Oak Street, Van Worth Street and Sycamore Streets need repair. Because of their

condition, it can be attractive to tear down these houses for new development.

• Demolition permits have been issued for three other historic resources this year.

ENDANGERED: The Britton Community

After the most prominent building in Britton, the Citizens Bank, was destroyed by a storm in 2019, several houses on the Historic Resources Survey were demolished to make way for new housing. There are few historic resources left in Britton and the community’s rural character is slipping away.

• Center passage house at 928 Noah Street, lost 2019

• 1935 Center gabled bungalow at 916 Noah Street, lost 2021

• Older houses on Cope, Cook and Dollar Streets have become candidates for demolition.

When historic buildings are demolished or inappropriately altered, the historic character of the neighborhood can be lost. Care should be taken when seeking demolition or alteration of downtown historic resources. Often, rehabilitation of the historic structure can be achieved.

The Commission maintains an inventory of historic properties in Mansfield you can access on-line at www.mansfieldtexas.gov/1167/HistoricPreservation. Find out if you own a piece of Mansfield’s history!

Buying a historic property? Have questions?

We have advice and incentives to assist with restoration and rehabilitation of Mansfield's historic buildings. Contact the Historic Preservation Officer at (817) 276-4226 or art.wright@mansfieldtexas.gov for more information.

Repairs at the Troy Hackler House (c. 1880) include the ornamental gable trim

The 1894 Post Office was designated as a landmark in 2021

Demolition of the 1925 Ira F. and Jettie Holland House is scheduled for 2022

PRESERVATION BY THE NUMBERS

• Mansfield has 30 designated historic landmarks with two more in process

• Thirty-two properties have been designated as Officially Recognized historic resources

• Six properties in Mansfield are listed on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Ralph Man Homestead, the home of one of our town founders

• There are nine Texas State Historical Markers in Mansfield.

• Mansfield has one Recorded Texas Historic Landmark, the Nugent-Hart House.

• The Commission has reviewed 16 applications for Certificates of Approval since 2018.

• There have been six local historic landmark designations since 2018.

• Since 2018, there have been 20 demolition permits issued for structures listed on the City’s Historic Resources Survey. Three of the permits were issued this year.

• Additional properties have been removed from the Historic Resources Survey, including four in 2021 and three in 2022. Lost properties are noted each year during the ongoing update of the Survey.