On the southwest corner of Chaparral and Peoples in downtown Corpus Christi sits a structure known since the 1930s as the Montgomery Ward building. On June 23, 1934, thousands of people attended the grand opening of Ward’s new and modern department store. The site of the new store was well known to the citizens of Corpus Christi. Since the mid-1880s, a retail building had occupied this corner of Chaparral Street.
Corpus Christi's founder, Henry Kinney, originally sold the property to German immigrants Maximillian and Anna Dreyer in 1844. Maximillian died in 1867, and ownership passed to Annie Dreyer’s daughter when her mother passed away in 1878.
Annie was only 15 years old, but she was already an astute businesswoman. She managed to hold on to the property and obtain a clear title. In 1883, she married William Uehlinger. The two would later construct a beautiful two-story building on the property, naming it the “Uehlinger Building”. In 1889, the new building was leased to Morris Lichtenstein. Lichtenstein’s Department Store would remain in this building until 1911, when it moved into a new building on Chaparral at Schatzell. After Lichtenstein’s moved out, Annie Dreyer Uehlinger leased the building to “Guggenheim and Cohn” department store. That firm remained in the building until 1921, when a fire ravaged the upper floor of the structure, requiring extensive repairs.
In 1924, “Meehan’s Dry Goods” moved into the renovated building and remained there until the early 1930s. After Meehan’s moved out, Annie….now known as Annie Dreyer Johnson…operated a theater and an events center in her “Uehlinger Building” until 1933.
On August 29, it was announced that Annie Johnson had negotiated a deal with Montgomery Ward for a new store in Corpus Christi at the site of the Uehlinger Building. Ward’s agreed to pay $70,000 to $100,000 for “a new building”. Mrs. Johnson would retain ownership but would grant Ward’s a 30-year lease. Ward’s would also pay $210,000 for a 30-year lease on the land to be paid out monthly over the duration of the lease.
Newspaper accounts at the time indicated that the almost 50-year-old Uehlinger Building would be demolished and a totally new, three-story structure would be erected.
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But is that what really happened?
The August 29, 1933 announcement predicted that the new store would be open by January 1, 1934. That’s four months to tear down the old building and build the new one, which seems pretty ambitious.
Despite the high expectations, the January 1st opening did not take place. In fact, construction had not even officially begun….and would not begin until the end of the month. Work on the building did not officially start until January 28, 1934.
The building permit, issued the day before, set the construction cost at $58,839. Nelson P. Rice was listed as the architect and Walsh and Burney of San Antonio as the contractor. A December 19, 1933, article in the Caller said that the old Uehlinger Building “was being torn down”, but it doesn’t appear as if that actually happened. A December 20, 1933, Doc McGregor photo shows what clearly appears to be a RENOVATION and not a DEMOLITION. The interior of the store appears to be gutted, with rafters of a new roof being put into place.
The project encountered major delays in the shipment of materials, especially steel, through the month of March. Nevertheless, the new Ward’s would be finished and open to the public on June 23, 1934. A close examination of a photo of the “new” building, taken by Doc McGregor on February 1, 1937, shows many elements of the old Uehlinger Building. The placement of windows and the awning appear to be identical to the old building. The cosmetic elements of the facade appear to have been simplified, giving the building a more “modern” appearance. Even in photos of today’s abandoned Ward’s Building, one can see similarities to the 1880s Uehlinger Building.
Montgomery Ward operated its retail store in the building until 1960, when it became a Ward’s catalogue store. It remained at the location until 1969 before moving out and leaving the building vacant. In 1977, developer Bill Sweetland opened “Peoples Alley” in the old Wards Building. Described as a “pedestrian mall” with shops, restaurants, and galleries. The enterprise only lasted until November 1979. The building has been boarded up and vacant ever since.
In 2017, the late, great Murphy Givens penned an article in which he questioned the building’s age. Was the Montgomery Ward Building a new construction in 1934, or was it simply a renovation of the old Uehlinger Building? He seemed to lean toward evidence that pointed to a renovated Uehlinger Building. If that is true, then the 1880s Uehlinger Building, later renovated to become the Montgomery Ward Building, is the oldest building in downtown Corpus Christi…..not the 1891 Lovenskiold Building on Mesquite at Peoples, as many believe.
Pioneering Corpus Christi businesswoman Annie Dreyer Uehlinger Johnson passed away on September 15, 1950, at the age of 87.
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.
