preservationists

Julia Cauthorn

In 1973, Julia Cauthorn, also known as “The Duchess of King William,” purchased the gothic revival, Alfred Giles designed cottage known as the Sartor House at 217 King William.

Julia was a passionate supporter of the local performance arts, and on many Sunday afternoons would host musicales in her home to showcase an up and coming singer, performance group, musician, or dancer that had recently caught her fancy. She would set up chairs in her parlor and invite the neighbors in for the performance and serve cake and punch afterwards on her verandah.

Although she was an ardent preservationist and worked tirelessly to restore and preserve homes in King William, she was often at odds with Walter Mathis. Julia’s approach to restoration was somewhat pragmatic and open-minded, whereas Walter was a stickler for authenticity. “If you carry Walter’s philosophy to its logical conclusion,” Julia said, “we ought to all be living in Indian tepees.” Julia died in 2000 at age 82.

Walter Mathis

Walter Nold Mathis passed away on 30 December 2005 at the age of 86 years. He was born in San Antonio on 13 August 1919 to Arthur Mathis and Jessie Bell Mathis. He was the grandson of Thomas Henry Mathis, rancher and founder of Mathis, Texas and co-founder of Rockport, Texas. His maternal grandfather was Samuel C . Bell, former mayor of San Antonio.

Mathis was a direct descendant of Maria de Jesus Curbelo, a member of one of the original Canary Island families who founded San Fernando de Bexar in 1731 and of John W. Smith, who brought 32 volunteers to the Alamo from Gonzales, was the Alamo's last messenger, and San Antonio's first Mayor under the Republic of Texas.

Mathis graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor's Degree in business administration. He was a member and officer of the Phi Gamma Delta Fraternity.

On the morning after Pearl Harbor, Mathis enlisted in the Army Air Corps. Following pilot training, he was given command of the 45th Squadron, 265th Division, 9th Air Force. The unit, called "First Pathfinders," provided front line B-26 aerial support for the Normandy invasion and later for General Patton and consisted of 196 men. Only 28 survived. Although eligible for discharge after completing 25 missions, Mathis completed 65 missions and remained on active duty until the war ended.

Upon returning to San Antonio, Mathis was hired by Dittmar and Company and became one of the youngest stockbrokers to hold a seat on the New York Stock Exchange. He was elected as president of Dittmar and Company. In addition to having a successful career as an investment banker, Mathis was a collector, philanthropist, and preservationist who worked tirelessly for the benefit of San Antonio and Texas.

Mathis continued the tradition of civic service that had inspired his family for twelve generations. He became president of the San Antonio Symphony, the Order of the Alamo, and the Christmas Cotillion Club. He was a founder of the Argyle Club, founding member and director of Club Giraud, lifetime trustee of the McNay Art Museum, first chairman of the San Antonio Riverwalk Commission, and chairman of the Historic Review Board for the City of San Antonio.

Mathis served on boards of the San Antonio Museum of Art and the Witte Museum. He was a life member of the Witte Museum and the San Antonio Little Theatre. He was a member of the Friends of the McNay, the Quillin Society for the Witte Museum, the German Club, the St. Anthony Club, the King William Association, the Victorian Society in America, the Napoleonic Society of America, the Royal Scottish Dance Society, San Antonio's Founding Heritage Society, the Friends of the Canary Islands, the Sons of the Republic of Texas, and a Knight in the Order of San Jacinto among others.

Mathis was responsible for the preservation and redevelopment of the King William Area by first buying and restoring his house, Villa Finale, and later purchasing fourteen other 19th- Century historic houses in the area. He restored eight houses completely, and after fixing the foundations and installing metal roofs on those remaining, he often sold the homes to young couples or friends, carrying the notes at low interest and assisting them with guidance during their restoration process.

Mathis was a member of the Texas Commission on the Arts. As a member of the San Antonio Conservation Society, he received 8 different awards for his conservation efforts on the Riverwalk and in the King William Area. He received many more honorary titles and awards for lifelong efforts to preserve and restore important historical and architectural icons in Texas.

Three years before his death, Mathis donated his house, Villa Finale, and extensive collections to the National Trust for Historic Preservation and established an endowment for its operation as a museum.

Margaret Gething

Margaret Gething lived in her house at 409 East Guenther from 1944 until she died in 1975 at about age 90. She was a gracious Southern lady, the great-granddaughter of an English lord, a debutante, an early Fiesta duchess, Broadway actress (once sharing the stage with Clark Gable in a starring role), and one of San Antonio’s foremost conservationists. She was a principal in the founding of the King William Area Conservation Association in 1947 and served as its first president.

The giant cypress trees along our portion of the San Antonio River are still there largely due to Gething’s efforts. In 1965, she led the successful fight to prevent the Army Corps of Engineers and the San Antonio River Authority from removing those magnificent trees located in the river channel adjoining King William, including the ones behind Margaret’s house across from Blue Star. It’s said that her personal friendship with Lady Bird Johnson was instrumental in stopping the bulldozers.

Though not a King William Fair event, Miss Margaret’s House Museum, an amazing collection of Victoriana, is open during Fiesta and on King William Fair day.

Mary Schug

Mary Schug and her husband Phil moved to 222 King William from the Mahncke Park area in 1963. Mary was familiar with the neighborhood since her daughters had been attending the Girl Scout day camp just down the street at the Groos house at 335 King William.

In a 2002 interview, Mary said she remembered the neighborhood as being a pretty slummy place back then. “The Joske house was a half-way house and the Sartor house across the street from us was a Family Welfare Association office with clients lined up for half a block on distribution days. But by the late 1960s, people were beginning to realize that this neighborhood had a future,” said Mary. “People with families were starting to buy these old houses and fix them up. They were mostly younger folks, many who didn’t have a lot of money, but they had vision and a lot of energy.”

Mary served as president of the King William Area Conservation Association in 1964. That same year, the city was proposing a flood control project which would have essentially turned our part of the river into a cemented channel with no walkways, landscaping, or trees. The group drafted a letter to Congressman Henry B. Gonzales protesting the action. “I signed it and sent it off,” said Mary. “I don’t know how much good it did but Henry B. wrote us a nice letter and enclosed a copy of his letter to the city supporting our protest. Soon after that, they backed off that plan.”

In 1968, Mary chaired the first King William Fair. In 1970, she served as president of the board of the King William Association, formed just three years earlier in 1967. Mary died in 2011 at age 93.

Ilse Griffith

Ilse Griffith attended Bonham Elementary and graduated from Brackenridge High School in 1916 with the school’s very first graduating class. She lived at 422 East Guenther from 1973 until she died in 1999 at age 99. During those years, she took her turn as KWA board president (1974-1976) and served as Fair Chair when she was 75. She served as an election judge for over 20 years until she retired the year before she died. After retiring from Groos Bank, Ilse became an active volunteer with San Antonio Conservation Society, Institute of Texas Cultures and Texas Folklore Society, to name a few.

Thanks to Bill Cogburn for providing this content.