Lewis Railroad Hotel
The Honor Award for the restoration of the Lewis Railroad Hotel in San Augustine, Texas was presented to Linda Mathews on behalf of the San Augustine Legacy Group at Preservation Texas’s Northeast Texas Regional Preservation Summit in Tyler on September 7, 2023. The circa 1870 hotel was previously included on Preservation Texas’s Most Endangered Places list in 2012.
"We are proud to be able to share this project with other Texans as an example of what can be accomplished through partnerships with local groups that are dedicated to serving their community," said Evan Thompson, Executive Director of Preservation Texas.
Presented every other year, Preservation Texas Honor Awards recognize outstanding efforts to restore, preserve, rehabilitate or reconstruct historic places that have been individually included on Preservation Texas's Most Endangered Places list or relate to a previous statewide thematic endangered listing. This year’s Honor Awards celebrate the remarkable efforts made by individuals, organizations, and communities to rehabilitate once imperiled historic places, breathing new life into cherished structures while honoring their historical significance and architectural integrity.
From Left to Right: Ron Siebler, Board of Directors, Preservation Texas; Sue Lazara, Board of Directors, Preservation Texas; Linda Mathews, San Augustine Legacy Group; Conor Herterich, Northeast Texas Program Officer, Preservation Texas
Located at 500 West Columbia Street, the Lewis Railroad Hotel was built circa 1870 as a single family home, and later served as a boarding house for African American railroad workers. The hotel became popular in the early 20th century after the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway Company extended its tracks through San Augustine. The hotel not only provided a home for Black men working on the railroad, but also served as a gathering place and safe haven for Black travelers through East Texas.
In the mid-20th century, the hotel was converted into apartments and later became a private residence in the 1970s. After a long period of vacancy and neglect, the City of San Augustine acquired the severely deteriorated building in 2012.
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The San Augustine Legacy Group, a local organization dedicated to preservation, restoration, neighborhood renewal, educational enrichment, and economic development, has since worked in close partnership with the City to raise the funds necessary to stabilize the hotel, while overseeing the restoration effort. The group has overcome significant obstacles and setbacks, including severe damage during hurricane Harvey in 2017, and as of 2023, phase one of the restoration has been successfully completed.
The Lewis Railroad Hotel will become a museum honoring the early economic contributions of African Americans in San Augustine. The preservation of this important historic resource will greatly benefit the community, while serving as a symbol of an important chapter of Texas history.
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