ADOBE AT THE PASS: DOCUMENTING THE MISSION VALLEY IN 1936

March 27 - August 30, 2025 at the West Texas Heritage Center

INTRODUCTION

In 1936, in the depths of the Great Depression, San Antonio architect Marvin Eickenroht (1898–1969) was hired by the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) to document endangered historic structures in West Texas, especially in El Paso County. His work highlighted buildings made of adobe, a material deeply rooted in the region’s history. Common in the Southwestern United States and Northern Mexico, adobe was the primary building material in El Paso County until the arrival of the railroad in 1881, which introduced more modern construction materials imported from elsewhere.

Through his work with HABS, Eickenroht helped preserve the architectural heritage of West Texas by documenting some of its most significant adobe buildings, a historically important but increasingly endangered building type unique to the region.

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CREDITS

This exhibit is made possible in part by a grant from El Paso County. All HABS photographs are in the public domain and available at the Library of Congress. Research by Victor Hurtado, West Texas Program Officer, and graphic design by Samantha Hunick, Programs Coordinator, Preservation Texas.