Joe & Bertha Harper House
811 N. Live Oak, Rockport, Tx 78382 (see map) MARKER TEXT Built around 1910, this two-story frame Colonial Revival was used as a boarding house for shipyard employees. The home was also used for shelter for 50 refugees during the 1919 hurricane that devastated the coast. In 1920, county judge Joe A. Harper (1881-1928) and his new wife, Bertha Oertling Harper (1888-1978), purchased the home. Judge Harper, a four-term County Judge, was influential in bringing the first coastal highway to the area which spurred development. After Joe’s untimely death in 1928, Bertha and her siblings lived in the home for almost 45 years while she continued her long career as a teacher for primary grades and at the First Baptist Church.
Baldwin-Brundrett House
1028 N. Live Oak, Rockport, TX 78382 (see map) Aransas county judge W.H. Baldwin, who promoted Rockport as a deep water port, lived in this house in the 1890’s. George A. Brundrett, Jr. was a confederate veteran and cattle rancher on 15,000 acres on Matagorda island; His family lived here from 1917- 1942. Brundrett’s second wife, Flavilla, often turned the parlor into a makeshift hospital, and it is said that 200 people took shelter here during the 1919 hurricane. This one story house retains it basic design from the 1880s and exemplifies the queen Anne style adapted to the Texas coast. The house has a front facing gable, hip roof, lace-like corner brackets and it original windows and doors. The only modification has been the enclosure of the back porch.
A.L. Bracht House
409 N. Magnolia, Rockport, TX 78382 (see map) Adolph Bracht (1872-1961) was born in Rockport and worked at lumber and grocery stores before establishing his own wholesale and retail grocery in 1899. He was a charter member of the Intracoastal Canal Association and active in the Chamber of Commerce and Sacred Heart Catholic church for many years. He shipped vegetables raised by growers in this area and the Rio Grande Valley. He ran his grocery business until his retirement in 1947. Adolph and his wife Gertrude (Prophet) had nine children. Their prairie-style two-story house (Built c.1898-1902) features lap siding, a low-pitched roof with dormers, wraparound porch with Doric columns and cast stone footings and an asymmetrical facade with bay windows.