Researching House Histories

1. The first place to check is the Smith County Appraisal District to obtain a legal description for the property. Determine the lot and block number for the property, or copy the metes and bounds description if no block and lot number is given. A date of construction should also be listed, but this information is often incorrect by many years, so take it under advisement. When you finally find out when the house was built from other records, compare the two and see how close the Appraisal District got.

2. Check the Sanborn maps at the Smith County Historical Society, located at the old Carnegie Library building, 125 S. College. The archives are open to the public on Wednesday afternoons, 1:30 - 4:30 p.m. The Sanborn maps are also on microfilm at the public library, and there is a machine to "read" the maps and make copies. Historic Tyler, Inc., 605 S Broadway also has a copy of the Sanborn maps on microfilm. Start by looking at the maps for the approximate year you think the house was built. Sanborn maps were updated every 8 to 10 years so if you find your house on a particular year's map, you know it was built by that year. Then look at the next oldest map to see if your house was shown in that year. If it is not shown on the next oldest map, then you can be sure it was built after that year, but before the date of the maps on which you did find it. An example: Look at the 1928 map, if you find your house look at the 1919 maps. If it is not shown on the 1919 map, then you know the house was built between 1919 and 1928. Sanborn maps will not give you the exact year of construction, but will help you narrow the focus of your search. Since street names and house numbers were changed several times in the early 1900s, be sure to count the number of lots on your side of the street starting at each corner before you begin your research, then when you find the first recording of your house on a Sanborn map, count the lots and check the address, which is usually shown on the street right in front of each lot, and make a note of the street name if it is different. Check the "footprint" of the building on the Sanborn map, and see if it closely approximates the shape of your house. Great differences usually indicate that your house replaced an older one, or an older one was greatly remodeled. Record the materials and number of stories of the house shown. Sanborn maps use yellow for wood, red for brick and blue for concrete. Check the key at the front of the map book to verify the color coding for different materials. A number such as 1 or 2 will be written within the house footprint, this indicates the number of stories.

3. Look in the old City Directories located on the third floor of the Public Library in the local history room. If you know the range of dates during which your house was built-1919 to 1928, for example, start looking in the City Directories in 1919 and see if your address (or the number) is listed. Once you find your address, record the year, who lived in the house, where they worked, their occupation, their wife's name, and any other information given. The first entry you find for your house gives you a very close date for its construction. Remember that buildings are usually erected 6 months to a year earlier than when they first show up in City directories or phone books. So if you find your house listed for the first time in 1924 in the City Directory, you can be pretty sure it was build in 1923 or early 1924. You can continue to search City Directories to see how long the first occupant was in the house, and compile a list of subsequent owners and tenants. This will help you create a detailed profile of who lived in your house over time, and what they did for a living. The librarians can help you with these tasks.

4. Once you have a date from the City Directories, go to the basement of the Smith County Court House, deed records room. Ask to look through the Mechanics Liens. The liens record the name of the person who commissioned the house, the contractor, the architect (if there was one), the cost to build the house, the date work was to be completed, and a brief description. Usually descriptions say "build a five-room brick veneer house and garage for ,500," or something similar. Other, more detailed information is sometimes provided. To find your property, you must know the year, or approximate year. Having an owner's name is helpful too, since you can use an index to look for owner names, and then look up the actual document. However, sometimes the person who built the house is not the first occupant (the person you found in the City Directory), so if you don't find your first owner's name, you must look through the entire mechanics liens book in search of the right document. Since most mechanics liens do not show street address, you must use the legal description obtained at the Appraisal District to be sure you have found the right piece of property. Once you have found the lien for your house, you may make a photo copy of it or hand copy the information. The deed room employees can help you. Mechanics liens are not recorded for every property, and the older the property (before the mid 1920s) the less chance there is of finding a mechanics lien. However, it is important to check, because many buildings going back to the 1800s have mechanics liens. If you find a mechanics lien for your house, look in the index book to find the contractor listed on your lien. If you see that he filed many liens in a span of years, say the 1930s, then you know he was a busy, successful local contractor.

5. Next, research the names of the people shown on the mechanics lien, and the people you found in the City Directories. Do this at the local history room at the public library using a list of obituaries and cemetery records. The obituary list is for a short span of years in the early 1900s. If your house was built before 1915, you can use this list to try and find obituaries on early owners, or the builder. If your house was built after that date, then use the list of cemetery records for Oakwood and Rose Hill cemeteries, which show the names of everyone buried there and give the date of their death. If you find someone connected to your house, go to the Tyler newspapers on microfilm (in the same room at the library) and try to find an obituary for the person. Obituaries typically ran the same day as the person died, or within one to three days thereafter. Obituaries are usually small notices buried somewhere in the paper. Only very prominent people's obituaries were on the front page. Obituaries can tell you about the person's career, family and identify surviving children who may still be living, and who if you contact them, might tell you more about your house. The librarians can help you with these tasks.

6. If the house you are researching is in the Charnwood Historic District, you can look at the National Register nomination for the district at the offices of Historic Tyler, Inc., the Public Library local history room, or the Smith County Historical Society Archives. If the house you are researching is described in detail as one of the representative properties in the nomination, you may use the detailed information written there. If your house is listed as Contributing in the nomination, but no written information is included, you may want to contact Diane Williams of Austin, the architectural historian who researched the Charnwood district. She might have information on your property to share with you. Historic Tyler can tell you how to contact her.

7. Go to the Smith County Historical Society Archives and check their photo lists and notebooks by name, family and business. An old photo of your house may turn up. Also check their vertical file index for articles and other written information using family name, and business. The volunteers will assist you in locating this information in their files. Be aware that newspaper articles often have incorrect information, especially those written many years after an event. Articles from the time period you are researching are more likely to be accurate than those written 50 or 80 years later. Remember to look up architects and contractors, too. This information adds to understanding about who built your house, whether it was designed by a local architect, or built by a contractor who probably built lots of other houses in Tyler, too.

With all the data you have compiled, you are ready to prepare a house history, or a local landmark application.

1. Research home history

2. Complete Tyler Register of Historic Landmarks Nomination Form in this workbook. Forms are also available from the:

Tyler Historical Preservation Board
City of Tyler Planning & Zoning Department

3. Turn completed form into the Planning & Zoning Department

4. Nomination Form gets forwarded to the Tyler Historical
Preservation Board

5. If additional information or research is needed, the form may be returned, or additional information/explanations may be necessary

6. When the form is complete and accurate, the Tyler Historical Preservation Board will visit the property.

7. The property will be evaluated for marker designation

8. If a marker is approved, it will be provided by the City of Tyler.
An additional subject marker would be at the cost of the homeowner.