Shary Building - Explore RGV

Designed by San Antonio architect Harvey P. Smith, this two-story edifice was constructed of brick with white stone trimming and erected on the site of Mission founder John Conway’s business offices. Intended to house the multifirm organization of John H. Shary, known as “The Father of the Texas Citrus Industry,” the structure was completed in 150 days by June 1939 and originally cost $40,000.

A distinctive Spanish colonial revival design, the building contains many features of the Mexican colonial style, such as its exposed tile roof with clipped eaves, similar to thatched roofs of Mexican domestic architecture. The concrete tiers of its first-story windows evoke the wrought iron brackets of Mexican balconies of the 19th century. Wrapped in native brick painted white, the building would insulate itself in Mission’s humid climate until the late 1940s, when central air became practical. The 1979 addition of a “City Hall Room” was a one-story wing set back from the main elevation to blend with the original “L” shape.

Dedicated to the community in 1939, the building became the offices of the city of Mission upon its sale by Shary’s daughter and her husband, former Texas Governor Allan Shivers, in 1960.

Recorded Texas Historic Landmark – 1997