The owner of this historic property was recently in contact with the Trost Society, providing materials and history that are very interesting. According to Sanborn Maps from 1928, this home was one of the earliest residences in the Austin Terrace area.
The first mention we can find of this wonderful Pennsylvania Dutch residence is in the October 28, 1926 El Paso Herald - a new baby girl was born to Mr. and Mrs. Stephen Carter at 21 Cumberland Circle. We are unable to find primary documentation identifying the architect for this granite rock build, however the design, area of town, and date strongly suggest Otto Thorman as the designer. In the mid-to-late 1920s, El Paso boasted a number of maestros that were able to design a building like this - including Bradford Hardie Jr., H.M. Beutell (who was the city Building Inspector at this time), Guy Lewis Fraser and of course an early Mabel Welch or Trost & Trost. The only architect we can truly rule out at this time is Fraser, who was working directly with Harry Hussmann at the time and did not branch out on his own until later in his career. Welch was still working with her husband in 1925, so *may* have designed the home without being given credit. Nevertheless, the year built, area of town, and the design (especially the exterior rock walls) give us the assurance that it was probably a Thorman build.
The new parents, the Carter Family, were in the home by late autumn of 1926. EPCAD pinpoints the permit/build year to 1925, which suggests an early to mid-year 1926 completion.
Here's where the history gets interesting. In February 1936, while the home was still occupied by the Carters, a two-story addition was added to the rear of the home, designed and built by Mabel Welch. Chew on this a minute -- an Otto Thorman design with a Mabel Welch addition? That gives us chills.
The Stephen Carter family remained in the home until 1940, when Mr. Carter passed away. By 1942, the home was owned by U.S. Army Major H.C. Yapp, and then in (or slightly before) 1945 the residence became the property of its most famous owner - Major General Terry de la Mesa Allen, a WWII commander known as "Terrible Terry" Allen. Allen remained in the home until his passing in November of 1967. For a most interesting article about Major General Allen, take a look at the March 4, 1965 Wichita Beacon at https://www.newspapers.com/image/694481219/?terms=21%20Cumberland%20Circle&match=1.
The home is currently in excellent condition and well maintained. Descendants of the Carter family were in contact with the current owners, and provided them with pictures and documentation detailing some of the home's early history, including a 1937 lien placed on the house by Mabel Welch herself. They have graciously provided some of this documentation, reproduced below, to the Trost Society.
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Text and research provided to Sketchclub.net by Mark Stone, citing period newspaper articles accessed at newspapers.com. Also citing the current homeowners who have provided narrative and documentation. Other citations are embedded in photo comments below.
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| Google Earth Street View accessed 03/28/2021 |
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| Google Earth Street View accessed 03/28/2021 |
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| Google Earth Street View accessed 03/28/2021 |
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| Photograph courtesy of the Estate of the Carter Family (the original owners of the property), used by express permission and via the current home owner |
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| Photograph courtesy of the Estate of the Carter Family (the original owners of the property), used by express permission and via the current home owner |
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| Photograph showing the 2-story 1936 Mabel Welch addition, submitted by the current homeowners. Note the slight difference in the rock colors. The second floor included an additional bedroom, and the bottom floor was a kitchen. |
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| Clipping from the 1928 Sanborn Map, courtesy of the Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection at the University of Texas Library. The Carter Home, two years old at the time this map was drawn, is one of the only existing Austin Terrace homes. |
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| A copy of the 1937 lien placed on the home by Mabel Welch, obtained from the current homeowner and originally from the Carter estate |
