Charlie Eric Jenkins

The plaque lists Jenkins's trades. His own house shows them. He built it in 1890 on East 25th Street for himself and his bride, Julia Lula Birdwell, and it was moved in 1956 to East 21st Street, where it retains turned wood posts, jigsawn detailing, brackets and spindlework. His brother Edwin was a druggist for nearly seventy years and served as mayor. Jenkins served the fire department for fifty-three years and was secretary to the Methodist Board of Stewards for about thirty. He died on October 26, 1943, weeks after retiring.

What the plaque says

Charlie Eric Jenkins English native Charlie E. Jenkins came to America in 1873 and to Bryan in 1878. One of Bryan's most prolific and talented builders of the late 19th and early 20th Centuries, Jenkins' legacy of distinctive structures has been recognized by national and state organizations for their historic and architectural significance. Jenkins is known for his masterful use of natural lighting and for employing many different styles. In addition to his architectural contributions, Jenkins also was active in the city's civic affairs, having served as both Fire Chief and City Building Inspector. (1993)

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum — 6.1 mi
  The library of the forty-first president on the Texas A&M campus, opened in 1997, where George and Barbara Bush and their daughter Robin are buried in a family plot on the grounds.
• Navasota — 26 mi
  A railroad and cotton town where the La Bahia Road crossed the Navasota River, scarred by an 1865 explosion and yellow fever, and the home ground of the songster Mance Lipscomb.
• Fanthorp Inn State Historic Site — 27 mi
  A cedar-log dogtrot cabin of 1834 on the road through Anderson that grew into a seventeen-room inn and post office for travelers of the Republic, kept by one family until 1976.
• Calvert — 27 mi
  A railroad cotton town of 1868 on State Highway 6 that claimed the largest cotton gin in the world and elected Black men to county and state office during Reconstruction.

More markers nearby

• Isom Palmer — steps away
• Confederate Veterans in Bryan City Cemetery — steps away
• Bryan City Cemetery — 0.2 mi
• Black Education in Bryan — 0.4 mi