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The Alleys and Back Buildings of Galveston An Architectural and Social History by Ellen Beasley |
for the
Best Book on East Texas History
An aspect of the American urban environment that has been often overlooked is the subject of Ellen Beasley's book, The Alleys and Back Buildings of Galveston. Alley houses, servants' quarters, carriage houses, stables, and other buildings have lined the alleys and filled the backyards of Galveston since its early days as a growing port city. While these buildings and their inhabitants have had a profound visual, physical, and social impact on the city, only now does their story reach the bookshelf.
Using historical documents, oral interviews, and the actual alleys and back buildings, Beasley produces a vivid picture of Galveston's alleys and alley life. She blends a unique combination of research, photography, and voices of those who have lived and live along the alleys. Beasley has uncovered and analyzed a wealth of new information not only about the back buildings of Galveston but also about their occupants and the complex cultural forces at work in their lives.
Other cities can learn from this ground-breaking study that ties together the architecture, the social history, and the design and adaptation of these building types. The result is a significant contribution to the field of architectural and urban history as well as to that of African-American studies.
ELLEN BEASLEY is a nationally recognized preservation consultant. She has received the prestigious Rome Prize in Urban Planning and Design at the American Academy in Rome and a Loeb Fellowship to the Harvard Graduate School of Design. She lived in Galveston for sixteen years and currently resides in Houston.
The Alleys and Back Buildings of Galveston
ISBN 0-89263-328-X cloth $39.95
LC 95-13938. 11x10. 180 pp. 122 b&w photos.
31 line drawings. 37 maps. 10 tables. Apps. Bib. Index.
Architecture. African-American Studies. Texana.
Publication Date: January 1997.
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