Title
Conduct a Public Hearing to Consider/Discuss/Act on the Request by Kim Black for Approval of a Historic Marker for the House Located at 509 North Kentucky Street
Summary
COUNCIL GOAL: Enhance the Quality of Life in McKinney.
MEETING DATE: September 3, 2020
DEPARTMENT: Planning
CONTACT: Guy R. Giersch, Historic Preservation Officer
Mark Doty, Assistant Director of Planning
STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff is recommending approval of a historic marker for 509 North Kentucky Street.
PRIORITY RATING: The property is listed as a high priority building according to the 2015 Update of the Historic Resource Survey. A high priority building contributes significantly to local history or broader historical patterns; is an outstanding or unique example of architecture, engineering or crafted design; retains a significant portion of its original character and contextual integrity; meets in some cases, criteria for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places and/or is eligible for a Texas Historical Marker.
ITEM SUMMARY: The purpose of the Historic Marker Program is to encourage owners of historic properties to become actively involved in the preservation of McKinney’s historic past through the recognition of historic events, people, and architecture. The applicant has submitted a written narrative relating the history of the various families that have owned the property or resided at 509 North Kentucky Street and the role they played in McKinney’s history. On July 6, 2020 the applicant submitted the necessary documentation to apply for a historic marker for the house located at 509 North Kentucky Street known as the Henry C. Myrick House.
The Myrick House was built in 1925 by James M. Pistole for the Myrick’s. It is an example of a Craftsman style home which was popular between 1905 and 1925. The house is a two-story wood frame house constructed on a pier and beam foundation. The house has a gable roof extending across the front of the house and a second story created by a cross gable. The front gable has a stained-glass window and uses knee-braces, false timber framing, and exposed rafter tails. The front porch is a three-bay porch supported with brick piers and tapered columns resting on the piers. The house is covered with wood clapboard siding. The house is fenestrated using four-over-one sashes. The house is clad with wood lap siding. There is an attached pergola on the left side of the house and like the porch is supported with brick piers and tapered columns. The three-bay front porch extends across the front of the house.
The house has experienced minimal alterations since it was built in 1925. A small utility room has been added to the rear of the house. The current owner has no plans to expand. She is committed to maintaining the Craftsman aesthetic of the house.
Historical Figures Associated with the House:
Henry Calvin Myrick (1875 - 1953)
• Henry Calvin Myrick was born in Tennessee in 1875 to William T. Myrick and Mary Jarrell. He moved to Collin County when he was 14. At the age of 26 Henry purchased 100 acres near Lowry Crossing presumably to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a farmer.
• In 1908, at the age of 33, Henry married 19-year-old Ama “Cattie” Bridgefarmer, the daughter of Dr. David Bridgefarmer and Nancy Willis of Lowry Crossing.
• Lowry Crossing got its name since this was where the East Fork of the Trinity River was shallow thus wagons and buggies could cross the river here. Today, if you go to Lowry Crossing you will find Bridgefarmer Road and Myrick Lane cross each other.
• The Myrick’s lived in McKinney. Mr. Myrick, along with Daniel C. Bridgefarmer owned a grocery business on east Louisiana Street near the Collin County Mill & Elevator Company. Throughout the 20’s the partnership changed. In 1929 a fire broke out in the store and destroyed much of the building and two delivery trucks.
• The Myrick business model relied on a direct connection with its suppliers. Henry would purchase directly from local farmers, often paying retail price as well as using trucks to bring in produce from the Rio Grande Valley. Myrick used the newly designed Ford V-8 trucks for more efficiency in pick-up and delivery of produce. He was an advocate for crop diversity in the crops grown in the fields. Myrick understood the importance of having a variety of fruits and vegetables.
Henry eventually left the grocery business and opened a garage business next door to the grocery store. However, it was during the 1920’s that Henry had the most success in the grocery business and in 1924 Henry and Ama purchased the lot at 509 North Kentucky Street to build on. In 1925, Myrick hired Jim Pistole to build a two-story, 7 room, Craftsman style house. Ama and Henry lived together at the house until Henry died in 1953. In 1994, at the age of 104, Ama died. Their only child, Henry Jr., is living in McKinney. He sold the house to Kim Black, current owner, in 1997.
James Monroe Pistole (1883-1928)
James Pistole was a farmer-turned-contractor. He bought and sold property In McKinney during the 20’s. James moved to McKinney from Tennessee, with his parents, in 1901. James eventually married Julia F. Odle and moved to Oklahoma. Eventually they came back to McKinney and Pistole got involved in the building trades. James became very successful in the construction business.
ASSESSMENT: Staff believes that the applicant has met all the requirements to obtain a Historic Marker under the Historic Neighborhood Improvement Zone Program (Ordinance 2015-12-105). Therefore, Staff is recommending approval of a Historic Marker for 509 North Kentucky Street.
Under Ordinance 2015-12-105, if the HPAB approves the Marker, the applicant will be responsible for purchasing and displaying the Historic Marker.
Also, under Ordinance 2015-12-105, if the Historic Preservation Advisory Board approves the Marker, the applicant may make application for a Level 1 tax exemption (100% exemption of the City’s ad valorem taxes for a period of 7 years) providing the building has architectural integrity and has been properly rehabilitated/restored and maintained. The building must have a residential use in order to qualify for the tax exemption.