Photographic Memories

It’s said that a picture is worth a thousand words, and we couldn’t agree more. We’ve asked Bryan residents to send us their historic photographs and tell us the stories behind them. It’s yet another way that we’re able to connect with our past.

SHARE YOUR PHOTOS

Welcome to Bryan

Click or swipe through this slideshow

train locomotive from 1868

1868: The Houston and Texas Central Railway’s “W. R. Baker” locomotive and coal tender would have made many trips through Bryan in the late 1860s and 1870s. This photo was taken in Hempstead in 1868, just after the Houston and Texas Central Railway reached Bryan in 1867.
(Photo courtesy of the DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University)

Early Bryan circa 1870

Circa 1870: Downtown Bryan with a team of oxen resting in the middle of Main Street.

Bryan firemen in 1887 in Downtown Bryan

1887: Bryan firemen in 1887 in Downtown Bryan.

1898: Two ladies wait in the wagon at the G.S. Parker Lumber Co. complex, which was located on Main Street between 20th and 22nd streets in Bryan. The lumber yard was on the east side of the complex and the cotton gin operations were on the west side.

Bryan Train Depot circa 1909.

Turn of the Century: Bryan Train Depot circa 1909. This depot was built in 1900 by the Calvert, Waco & Brazos Valley Railroad, which merged with the International & Great Northern Railroad in 1901

1910s downtown bryan

1910: Bryan in 1910. Main Street is still unpaved at this time, and there is a mix of horses, wagons, and the new automobiles.

“The Father of Brazos County”

Harvey Mitchell

Harvey Mitchell was one of Bryan’s first and most influential residents. He organized the first school in 1841 and served as its first teacher, holding class in the home of Richard Carter.

According to the Texas State Historical Association’s Handbook of Texas, he was also a justice of the peace, minister, hotel and store owner, surveyor and a blacksmith.

His crowning achievement occurred in 1871, when he arranged for the new land-grant college in Texas to be located in Brazos County. Today, we know it as Texas A&M University.

📷  View photos of Harvey Mitchell’s surveying equipment

📷  Read Harvey Mitchell’s Last Will and Testament

Historic Homes and Buildings

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  • 1878: Cavitt House on E. 30th Street
    1878: Cavitt House on E. 30th Street
  • 1880: Original Bryan School
    1880: Original Bryan School
  • 1902: Eugene Edge House: 508 E. 30th Street
    1902: Eugene Edge House on E. 30th Street
  • 1904: Astin Porter House on E. 29th Street.
    1904: Astin Porter House on E. 29th Street.
  • Dansby-Hall-House-611-E-29th-Street-1904
    1904: Dansby Hall House on E. 29th Street
  • 1905: Carnegie Library in Downtown Bryan
    1905: Carnegie Library in Downtown Bryan
  • Opera House in Bryan, Texas
    Pre-1909: Grand Opera House in Downtown Bryan
  • Sanders-House-610-E-29th in 1912
    1912: Sanders House on E. 29th Street.
  • 1928: The LaSalle Hotel in Downtown Bryan
    1928: The LaSalle Hotel in Downtown Bryan
  • The Palace Theater in 1938
    1938: The Palace Theater in Downtown Bryan
  • 1950s: Acme glass in Downtown Bryan 1950s.
    1950s: Acme glass in Downtown Bryan
  • 1950s: St. Joseph Hospital
    1950s: St. Joseph Hospital

Municipal Government

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  • 1929: Groundbreaking ceremony for the new Bryan City Hall with names of people in attendance
    1929: Groundbreaking ceremony for the new Bryan City Hall with names of people in attendance. View the Municipal Building construction specifications booklet
  • 1935: Bryan Fire Department
    1935: Bryan Fire Department
  • Late 1940s: Bryan City Council meeting
    Late 1940s: Council members attend a Bryan City Council meeting.
  • 1983-85: Fire Chief Herman Rice, Mayor Ron Blatchley and others salute a flag given to the city by E.C. Oates of the Elks Lodge.

School Days

  • Bryan High School in 1896.
    1896: Bryan High School students.
  • 1908: Graduating class of Bryan High School, in the Opera House in 1908.
    1908: Graduation ceremony for Bryan High School on the stage of the opera house in Downtown Bryan. Wesa Weddington, a descendant of Harvey Mitchell, organized the ceremonies, and would serve Bryan schools until her retirement in 1946.
  • Bryan High Football Team in 1919.
    1919: Bryan High School football team. This team set the foundations for the 1922 state championship team.
  • 1926: Ninth grade class of Bryan High School
    1926: Ninth grade class of Bryan High School
  • Bowie School, second grade in 1950.
    1950: Bowie School second grade class

🎧 Listen to Joe Ramirez’s oral histories about attending Ibarra Elementary School, and find out more about this school that served an entire generation of Mexican children in Bryan.

  • Ibarra School class photo. Year unknown.
    1930s-40s: Ibarra School class photo. Ibarra Elementary served Mexican students throughout the 1930s and 40s.
  • Ibarra School fifth grade basketball team.
    1951: Ibarra Elementary School fifth grade basketball team.
  • E.A. Kemp High School
    Circa 1961: The new E.A. Kemp High School (seen here) served only African American students until the 1971 desegregation of Bryan schools. Bryan’s first school for African Americans, Bryan Public School for Colored, was founded in 1885. The school was renamed Washington Elementary in 1930 when E.A. Kemp Junior-Senior High School was built. E.A. Kemp Junior-Senior High educated African American students for 30 years until the new E.A. Kemp High School was built. The Junior-Senior High was renamed R.C. Neal Junior High School at that time. Bryan schools were not integrated until 1971.

🎧 Listen to Dr. Oswell Person discuss his experiences with education in Bryan during segregation and how attending Washington Elementary and E.A. Kemp Junior-Senior High School shaped him.

  • Bryan High School Valkyries in 1974.
    1974: Members of the Bryan High School Valkyries. Front row, from left: Paula Murphy (’75), Terri Bond (’75). Back row, from left: Marianne Albanese (’76), JoBeth Williams (’75), Robin Owens (’76).
    (Photo courtesy of JoBeth Williams Thompson)

Unless otherwise credited, all photos are courtesy of the Carnegie History Center or the City of Bryan, Texas.