Bart Truxillo, Houstonian Who Saved Historic Buildings, Dies At 74

Bart Truxillo, who for decades was a crusader for historic preservation in a city that has a deserved reputation for plowing under the past, died on Wednesday at 74. He suffered an aneurysm.

Truxillo graduated from the University of Houston in 1965 with a degree in architecture, and three years later bought the 1920 Magnolia Brewery Building, which is located at 715 Franklin Street. He renovated the old building, which sat in the historic center of the city, and drew attention to the merits of preservation in an area that had turned into a nightclub zone.

"The popular restaurant Bismarck on the second floor [of the Magnolia] demonstrated that Houstonians could dine in an elegant Art Nouveau environment that most people had forgotten existed," Barry Moore, a preservationist and architect, told the Houston Chronicle.

About a half a decade later, Truxillo purchased a historic home in the Heights, a Victorian located at Harvard and 18th Street. "When I first saw this house at 1802 Harvard, it struck me. One of those moments in life when the light bulb goes: Bing!," he told Houston History Magazine. "It had been for sale for a year, but I didn't know about it. It was completely insane, and only an off-balanced person would take this house on, because it was in really desperately bad shape."

(Want daily updates about news and other events going on in your area? Sign up for the free Houston Patch morning newsletter.)

He was hooked, and preserving the Heights became his campaign. His house was added to the National Register of Historic Places, he helped found the Greater Houston Preservation Alliance — now known as Preservation Houston — and he served two terms as president of the Houston Heights Association.

"He was always, always, at any event that had to do with preservation," Barrie Scardino Bradley, an early member of the organization, told the Chronicle. "He was always willing to be in the midst of the fight."

"Bart was a kind and gracious man who more than made time for his family," Truxillo's nephew, Terrance Truxillo, told me. "His efforts in the community were a great source of pride for us. In this time of loss we continue to grasp his importance to the community."

A viewing for Truxillo will be take place on Sunday at the Heights Funeral Home from 5 p.m. until 9 p.m., and funeral services will be held on Monday at the Holy Rosary Catholic Church at 9:30-11:00 a.m. Truxillo will be buried at Glenwood Cemetery following the services.

Image: Bart Truxillo Facebook page