1870 Rev. Jack Yates House

Significance

The Reverend John Henry "Jack" Yates, who had been enslaved, began building this simplified Greek Revival house in 1870, just five years after Emancipation, at 1318 Andrews Street in Freedmen's Town. Yates became pastor of Antioch Baptist Church in 1868, later founded Bethel Baptist Church, and was a strong advocate of education for Black Houstonians, helping found the Houston Academy. The Yates family donated the house to The Heritage Society, which moved it to Sam Houston Park in 1994. It is furnished to reflect the family's life in the late nineteenth century and includes furniture that was in the house when the family lived there. In January 2022 UNESCO recognized the Sam Houston Park historic houses tied to Fourth Ward as part of its Slave Route Project.

Climate risks tracked

As a balloon frame wood house, the Yates House is most sensitive to moisture: humidity, wind driven rain at the two story porches, and water wicking into sills. Maintaining paint, gutters, and porch flashing, and keeping vegetation away from the walls, protects the original fabric that makes the house a document of Freedmen's Town building practice. Its relocation means the foundation can be monitored and adjusted without disturbing original material, which is an advantage on Houston clay. Interior collections, including family furniture, need stable humidity, and a backup plan for power outages during hurricanes or hard freezes such as February 2021 helps prevent mold and burst pipes in a building that must keep its historic interior intact.

Use the preservation assistant to talk through retrofit strategies for these specific threats.

Location

Nearby landmarks

• 1847 · Greek Revival (vernacular brick)

  Kellum-Noble House

• 1823 · Frontier Log Cabin

  1823 Old Place

• 1850 · Greek Revival

  Nichols-Rice-Cherry House

• 1891 · Vernacular Gothic Revival

  1891 St. John Church