{"nrhp_refnum":"02001060","name":"Merchants Ice and Cold Storage Company","other_names":[],"category":"district","location":{"address":"1305 E. Houston St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"San Antonio","county":"Bexar County","state":"TX","lat":29.425327276000075,"lon":-98.47720911599998,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2002-09-26","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Industry","Engineering"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"An industrial complex of four brick, concrete and clay tile ice-production and cold-storage buildings at 1305 East Houston Street, just east of downtown San Antonio, Texas. The buildings were constructed between 1909 and 1957.","why_significant":"The complex is significant under Criterion A in the area of Industry as a local example of the development of the ice and cold storage business over about 90 years. It also meets Criterion C in Engineering for its use of the lift-slab construction technique, pioneered in San Antonio by Tom Slick.","narrative":"Four utilitarian buildings on a city block just east of downtown San Antonio make up this former ice plant and cold storage warehouse. Chartered in 1909 by a partnership led by Louisville manufacturer Henry Vogt, the company built a four-story brick plant beside the railroad tracks near the Southern Pacific depot. It expanded repeatedly through 1957, shifting from ice production to cold storage as home refrigerators became common. Freezer space grew during World War II, and postwar warehouses served distribution contracts with the Quartermaster's Market Center. The buildings have few windows and no decorative detailing, but they keep their loading docks, cork-insulated rooms and cooling coils. Three use the lift-slab technique, an approach pioneered in San Antonio by engineer Tom Slick c. 1950 to build quickly and cheaply. The complex reflects the growth of the local ice and refrigeration industry and the use of this construction method. The company closed in 1999, and the property has been vacant since.","period_of_significance":"1909-1957","architect_builder":"W.E. Simpson Company (engineers)- additions including 1933 and 1948; Louis L. Guido (builder)- 1933 addition; J.B. Martin (builder)- 1948 addition.","architectural_style":"Other - Warehouse","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Occupied by Merchants Ice and Cold Storage from 1909 until 1999; vacant since 1999, in fair to good condition, and slated for commercial redevelopment.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:23.58205-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/77/9712/40971277/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/02001060.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40971277","wikipedia":null,"wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q110000190"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/bexar-county/merchants-ice-and-cold-storage-company-02001060/"}