Dan Reid was Corpus Christi Mayor and the city’s most prominent home builder in the years before and shortly after 1900. His business partner was Hugh Ross Sutherland.
"H. R." Sutherland was born in Nova Scotia in 1826. He came to the U. S. in 1841 and would later work as a surveyor. He was working on a project in Alabama when the Civil War broke out and there he joined the Confederate army. He rose to the rank of Captain by the end of the war.
In May of 1866, he married Miss Mary McCrae of Selma, Alabama. She was 16 years old and 24 years younger than Mr. Sutherland! In 1869, they moved to Texas, and to Corpus Christi in 1876. Together, they had two children: a daughter named Gussie (who died in a drowning accident in 1895) and a son, Hugh R. Sutherland, Jr., who became a prominent attorney and County Judge in Corpus Christi.
Mr. Sutherland, Sr. passed away at age 84 on July 4, 1906, leaving Mary a wealthy widow. She was one of the city’s most influential ladies, involving herself in numerous civic projects. She devoted her time to numerous worthy causes in her church (First Methodist) and in the city.
She was instrumental in raising funds for the construction of the memorial fountain called “Queen of the Sea” by Pompeo Coppini at the foot of the Bluff. She was a founding member of the Old Bayview Cemetery Association, formed in 1895 to beautify and protect the city's first cemetery (and where she and her husband now rest). She remained on the Executive Committee of the cemetery association for the remainder of her life.
In 1903, Mary Sutherland and a group of influential Corpus Christi ladies who were members of the Women’s Monday Club were successful in raising the funds to build the “Ladies Pavilion” on the bayfront.
Located over the water near where the Peoples Street T-head now stands, the pavilion was needed to replace the aging Market Hall as the city’s primary auditorium. For the next 13 years, the popular pavilion would host conventions, stage productions, band concerts, dances, and private parties before being destroyed in the 1916 hurricane.
Mary Sutherland was also an official member of the Volunteer Fire Department, donating her time to organize the annual Fireman’s Ball, and hosting many suppers for the firemen.
As much as Mrs. Sutherland did to enhance her beloved city, perhaps her greatest contribution was the 1916 publication of her book, "THE STORY OF CORPUS CHRISTI". It was the first written history of the city and its people and is absolutely fascinating in its content. Having lived in Corpus Christi since 1876, Mary knew or had personally known many of the city’s earliest pioneers, and she had taken a keen interest in the city’s growth and development. She was uniquely qualified to write an interesting and thorough history of the city from its earliest years. The book contained stories and data that Mrs. Sutherland had collected for over thirty years.
Only a few thousand books were initially printed. The price was nominal, and all proceeds were donated to charity. The book was out of print for decades, but reprinted copies are now fairly easy to find. I even found one at a bookstore in London several years ago.
In spite of her obvious Southern prejudices, Mrs. Sutherland vividly gives a firsthand description of the people and events that transformed Corpus Christi into a leading Texas city. When the book was published in 1916, the city's population was only 18,000. But it had a progressive and dynamic mayor by the name of Roy Miller who was moving Corpus Christi into the modern era.
Mary Sutherland ended her book with this passage: "Men, women, and children of the city have a most optimistic faith in the future of Corpus Christi and work untiringly for the progress of the city so that the day may not be far distant when Corpus Christi is not only the largest city in South Texas but also the best place in which to live throughout all the Southland."
If you're interested in Corpus Christi history, this book is a "must-read".
Mary Sutherland, Corpus Christi’s first historian, passed away on August 1, 1930, at the age of 80. She was buried beside him in Old Bayview Cemetery.
Robert Parks is a special contributor to KRIS 6 News. Parks was a history teacher at Carroll High School for 19 years and is now retired. His knowledge of Corpus Christi history makes him a unique expert in the subject.