MAY LUNCH & LEARN WEBINAR: 2025 Most Endangered Places List Announcement
With Evan Thompson, Executive Director, Preservation Texas
May 15, 2025 at 12:00 p.m.

Join us Preservation Texas on Thursday, May 15th for the official announcement of the 2025 Most Endangered Places (MEP) list! The MEP list is a signature program of Preservation Texas which has spotlighted imperiled places across the state since 2004. During this webinar, Preservation Texas staff will share photos and stories of each of the remarkable sites included on this year's list.

HOW TO REGISTER

Preservation Texas members can register in their online Preservation Texas account portal. Once logged in, click “Webinar Registration” in the left sidebar menu. If you are not a current member, we’d love to have you join or renew!

If you are unable to attend, don't worry! Lunch & Learn webinars will be recorded and uploaded to your online Preservation Texas account portal where you can watch or re-watch them later.

APRIL LUNCH & LEARN WEBINAR: The Architecture of Charles Dilbeck
With Willis Winters, FAIA
April 30, 2025 at 12:00 p.m.

Quirky. Eclectic. Whimsical. Delightful. All of these words have been used to describe the man and the work of architect Charles Dilbeck who designed some of the Dallas region's most interesting and important homes from the mid 1920s until the late 1960s. Join President of the board of Preservation Texas and founder of the Dilbeck Conservancy, architect Willis Winters, for a presentation on the life and work of a Dallas icon!

AIA CES approved
Credit: AIA members receive 1 LU for attending.

HOW TO REGISTER

Preservation Texas members can register in their online Preservation Texas account portal. Once logged in, click “Webinar Registration” in the left sidebar menu. If you are not a current member, we’d love to have you join or renew!

If you are unable to attend, don't worry! Lunch & Learn webinars will be recorded and uploaded to your online Preservation Texas account portal where you can watch or re-watch them later.

MARCH LUNCH & LEARN WEBINAR: The Ace Behind the Kings: Preserving the Legacy of Trailblazing Songwriter Cindy Walker
With Lindsay Liepman, Founder, Cindy Walker Foundation
March 26, 2025 at 12:00 p.m.

If you've ever heard a Bob Wills tune, then you've probably heard a Cindy Walker song. If Waylon Jennings declared, "Bob Wills is still the King," then Songwriter Cindy Walker was certainly the ace behind the kings of country music. Webinar attendees will hear the story of Cindy Walker's success in songwriting, her life in small town Texas and the historic preservation efforts underway to restore her home and studio in Mexia which was included on Preservation Texas's Most Endangered Places List in 2022 and on the National Trust's 11 Most List in 2024.

HOW TO REGISTER

Preservation Texas members can register in their online Preservation Texas account portal. Once logged in, click “Webinar Registration” in the left sidebar menu. If you are not a current member, we’d love to have you join or renew!

If you are unable to attend, don't worry! Lunch & Learn webinars will be recorded and uploaded to your online Preservation Texas account portal where you can watch or re-watch them later.

JANUARY LUNCH & LEARN WEBINAR: Preservation Texas Annual Report
With Preservation Texas board and staff
January 15, 2025 at 12:00 p.m.

Preservation Texas board and staff will provide an overview of our accomplishments in 2024 and also share our plans for 2025. This will be a great opportunity for members to ask us any questions and offer their input!

HOW TO REGISTER

Preservation Texas members can register in their online Preservation Texas account portal. Once logged in, click “Webinar Registration” in the left sidebar menu. If you are not a current member, we’d love to have you join or renew!

If you are unable to attend, don't worry! Lunch & Learn webinars will be recorded and uploaded to your online Preservation Texas account portal where you can watch or re-watch them later.

NOVEMBER LUNCH & LEARN WEBINAR: Saving the Luther Hotel
With Margaret Doughty and Edith Gower, Palacios Preservation Association
November 20, 2024 at 12:00 p.m.

Be inspired by the story of the grassroots fight to save the historic Luther Hotel from destruction against all odds! The Luther Hotel in Palacios was built on the Matagorda Bay in 1903. The first planned demolition date of December 19th, 2022, saw protests, letter writing, phone calling, and petition signing campaigns led by Margaret and Edith's group, the Palacios Preservation Association (PPA). It was one thing to extend the building's life, one temporary restraining order at a time, but another to find a solution to revive the Luther as a beautiful seaside hotel once again. However, the PPA's vision is now becoming a reality thanks to Margaret, Edith, and their community of supporters. Participants will hear the first-hand account of How Two “Little Old Ladies” Saved the Most Endangered Building in Texas.

HOW TO REGISTER

Preservation Texas members can register in their online Preservation Texas account portal. Once logged in, click “Webinar Registration” in the left sidebar menu. If you are not a current member, we’d love to have you join or renew!

If you are unable to attend, don't worry! Lunch & Learn webinars will be recorded and uploaded to your online Preservation Texas account portal where you can watch or re-watch them later.

ABOUT THE PRESENTERS

Margaret Doughty

Before retirement Margaret was an international literacy expert. A native of the United Kingdom, Margaret worked to raise literacy levels in Africa, the Middle East and the United States. She managed the UN Decade of Literacy activities in the US with the Right to Literacy Campaign. In 2000 she was awarded the Order of the British Empire by HRH Queen Elizabeth II at Buckingham Palace for her contribution to the field of international literacy. She now serves as co-chair of the Palacios Preservation Association.

Edith Gower

Edith currently serves as the Certified Local Government Representative for Matagorda County and Co-Chair of the Palacios Preservation Association. She has previously restored a historic 1910 house, which she operated as a bed and breakfast for several years, and also managed the local City by the Sea Museum for 10 years.

OCTOBER LUNCH & LEARN WEBINAR  (Texas Archaeology Month)

Finding the remains of a trail that is hundreds of years old is not an easy task, but that is precisely what researcher Gary L. Pinkerton has sought to do. Trammel’s Trace was a former Caddo trail that was later used by early Anglo immigrants coming into Texas. Gary’s 2016 book, Trammel’s Trace: The First Road to Texas from the North, provides a history of that road and its namesake, Nicholas Trammell. In his years of researching the Trammel’s Trace and mapping its likely route, Gary has driven hundreds of miles of back roads, wandered down remains of abandoned logging roads, and followed survey notes from the Original Texas Land Surveys looking for physical evidence of the trail. His follow up work, Finding Trammel’s Trace: A Guide to Roads, Ruts, Trails, and Swales focuses on that process.

One of the few remaining swales that can be identified with certainty as part of Trammel’s Trace is located at the Trammel’s Trace crossing of the Sulphur River (near Maud in Northeast Texas) where Mark Epperson operated a Republic of Texas-era ferry. A recent proposal to raise the water level of Wright Patman Lake threatens to flood this archaeologically important site, which was included on the Most Endangered Places List in 2022. 

As part of our monthly Lunch and Learn Member Webinar Series, Gary will present a webinar discussing his work finding the remains of the historic Trammel’s Trace trail with a focus on the area around Epperson’s Ferry.

HOW TO REGISTER

Preservation Texas members can register in their online Preservation Texas account portal. Once logged in, click “Webinar Registration” in the left sidebar menu. If you are not a current member, we’d love to have you join or renew!

If you are unable to attend, don't worry! Lunch & Learn webinars will be recorded and uploaded to your online Preservation Texas account portal where you can watch or re-watch them later.

ABOUT THE PRESENTER

Gary L. Pinkerton is an independent research and author who have published three books of history. A fourth about early contraband trade in East Texas is coming in March 2025. His education as a social worker and his career in human resources, combined with his innate curiosity, continue to fuel more detailed looks into all types of sources for historical research. Gary is the Managing Director of the Alliance for Texas History and is a fellow of the East Texas Historical Association.

SEPTEMBER LUNCH & LEARN WEBINAR

As part of Preservation Texas's monthly Lunch and Learn Member Webinar Series, Jessica Anderson, Assistant Manager of the City of San Antonio's Deconstruction & Circular Economy Program, will present a webinar on the city's new deconstruction ordinance.

Construction and demolition account for the largest single-stream source of waste in the United States. In September of 2022, the City of San Antonio adopted a deconstruction ordinance requiring that historic buildings slated for demolition be fully deconstructed instead. With the approval of this ordinance, San Antonio became the largest city in the country to ensure that irreplaceable historic building materials are kept out of landfills and salvaged for reuse within the community. In this webinar, Jessica will discuss how deconstruction fits within the goals of preservation and why it is an impactful tool for sustainability and public health. She will also explain how the program has used social media to share what they’ve learned in the first two years since the ordinance has been in place.

This webinar is AIA CES approved. AIA members receive 1.5 LU|HSW credits for participating.

HOW TO REGISTER

Preservation Texas members can register in their online Preservation Texas account portal. Once logged in, click “Webinar Registration” in the left sidebar menu. If you are not a current member, we’d love to have you join or renew!

If you are unable to attend, don't worry! Lunch & Learn webinars will be recorded and uploaded to your online Preservation Texas account portal where you can watch or re-watch them later.

ABOUT THE PRESENTER

Jessica Anderson is the assistant program manager for Deconstruction & Circular Economy in the City of San Antonio's Office of Historic Preservation (OHP). In this role, she reviews demolition requests, helps owners and contractors navigate the city’s deconstruction ordinance, and assists with coordination of deconstruction contractor trainings. Prior to joining the deconstruction team, she was a case manager for ScoutSA, the landmark and historic district designations arm of OHP, before moving to the design review team, where she evaluated proposed repairs and modifications to historic structures as well as plans for new construction in historic districts. Jessica earned an M.S. in historic preservation from The University of Texas at Austin School of Architecture.

As part of Preservation Texas's monthly Lunch and Learn Member Webinar Series, Architectural Historian Megan McDonald with Post Oak Preservation Solutions will present a webinar exploring how oral history can be employed to craft robust National Register narratives on Wednesday, August 21st at noon.

Preservation Texas members can register in their online Preservation Texas account portal. Once logged in, click “Webinar Registration” in the left sidebar navigation menu.

If you are not a current member, we’d love to have you join or renew!

The rehabilitation of the San Agustín Cathedral in Laredo is one of twelve projects being recognized with a 2023 Preservation Texas Honor Award. The 150-year old structure was previously included on Preservation Texas’s Most Endangered Places List in 2019. The Honor Award ceremony will be held at the Cathedral on Thursday, January 25, 2024 at 5:00 p.m.

"San Agustín Cathedral is a Laredo landmark that has served as a cultural, spiritual, and architectural beacon for generations”, said Evan Thompson, Executive Director of Preservation Texas. “The investments that have been made by the Diocese will ensure that the Cathedral stands proudly for many years to come. This project is an excellent example of how the 25% state historic preservation tax credit can be used to fund the rehabilitation of historic religious structures in 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. The 2023 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. Visit preservationtexas.org/honorawards to learn more.

Join Preservation Texas on Thursday November 16, 2023 at 6:30 p.m. at Lamar University’s Dishman Art Museum for a lecture by Stephen Fox titled “The Twentieth-Century Architectural Heritage of Texas’s Golden Triangle: Beaumont, Orange, Port Arthur”.

This event is free and open to the public, but reservations are required. Visit preservationtexas.org/beaumont to learn more and reserve your seat!

The 2023 Southeast Texas Regional Preservation Summit will be held on Thursday, November 16th at the McFaddin-Ward House Visitor Center in Beaumont. The Summit will focus on historic preservation issues in costal Texas including disaster preparedness and recovery, case studies, best practices, and the presentation of two Southeast Texas Honor Awards. Registration includes a box lunch and an opportunity to tour the historic McFaddin-Ward House. 

Visit preservationtexas.org/setxsummit for more information.

The 2023 North Central Texas Regional Preservation Summit will be held on May 11, 2023 at the Crazy Water Hotel in Mineral Wells. The Summit aims to educate and empower local preservationists, building grassroots support and capacity for historic preservation in North Central Texas.

Attendees will hear from a range of experts in preservation, history, architecture and planning. The program will feature informative sessions with topics including Mineral Wells history, the Bankhead Highway, Texas Tabernacles, Downtown Redevelopment, Tarrant County’s Preservation Plan, Abilene’s West Texas Utilities Company Power Plant, and more. The program will conclude with the announcement of the 2023 list of Texas’s Most Endangered Places. Lunch will be provided.

For more information, visit preservationtexas.org/nctxsummit.