Clara Driscoll | |
|---|---|
 Clara Driscoll circa 1913 | |
| Born | (1881-04-02)April 2, 1881 St. Mary's of Aransas, Texas, US |
| Died | July 17, 1945(1945-07-17) (aged 64) Corpus Christi, Texas, US |
| Occupation(s) | Philanthropist,historic preservationist, businesswoman |
| Known for | Saving theAlamo |
| Spouse | Henry Hulme Sevier (1906–1937) |
| Parent(s) | Robert Driscoll Sr. Catherine McGrath Duggan Driscoll |
Clara Driscoll (April 2, 1881 – July 17, 1945), was aTexas-born philanthropist. Driscoll is known as the "Savior of theAlamo" for her work to preserve the site of theBattle of the Alamo.[1]
Driscoll's grandfather Daniel O'Driscoll had been born inCounty Cork, Ireland.[2] and was a veteran of theBattle of San Jacinto.[3][4] In return for his service, he was awarded 1,200 acres (4.9 km2), plus an additional one-third of a league of land,[2] inVictoria County, Texas. He also served as aRefugio County Judge.[5] In 1837, Daniel married Catherine McGrath Duggan (1796–1852),[6] ofCashel, County Tipperary, Ireland, widow of Pat Duggan. Daniel became stepfather to Catherine's and Pat's children, Michael, John and Ellen, who later marriedMississippi plantation owner Daniel C Doughty. Mr. O'Driscoll died in an accident in 1849 and is buried at Mt. Calvary Cemetery[7] in Refugio.
Catherine and Daniel had two sons, Jeremiah (1838–1890) and Robert Sr (1841–1914), Clara's father. Upon Catherine's death in 1852, Ellen and Daniel Doughty[6] sold the Mississippi plantation and moved to Refugio to raise the boys. Both Jeremiah and Robert Driscoll Sr. were Privates in the Refugio Home Guard Unit[8] during theAmerican Civil War. Jeremiah and Robert Sr. expanded their operations[9] inNueces County, Texas.
On April 2, 1881 Driscoll was born onCopano Bay[10] inSt. Mary's of Aransas[11] inRefugio County, Texas. Clara's brother Robert Driscoll Jr.[12] was born October 31, 1871, near Victoria. He died July 7, 1929.
Clara was fluent in four languages[9] and educated at private academies:[13] Mrs. Gregory's School in San Antonio, Texas; Miss Peebles & Miss Thompson's School for Girls in New York City; and Château de Dieudonne, a finishing school inBornel, France.
In 1905, Clara publishedThe Girl of La Gloria, and in 1906 she publishedIn the Shadow of the Alamo.
The three-act comic operaMexicana,[14] was adapted from a book by Driscoll,[15] and was financed by her. Music was byJohn Raymond Hubbell with lyrics by Clara Driscoll andRobert Bache Smith. The production ran at theLyric Theatre (New York) for 82 performances,[16] from January 29, 1906, to April 7, 1906. It was produced byLee Shubert,Jacob J. Shubert andThe Shubert Organization. Listed among her friends in attendance[17] were bothUnited States senators from Texas,Joseph W. Bailey andCharles Allen Culberson as well as three Texas members of theUnited States House of Representatives,James L. Slayden,Albert S. Burleson andJohn Nance Garner, who would become Vice President (1933–1941) underPresident Franklin Delano Roosevelt.
On July 31, 1906,[9] Clara marriedTennessee-born[18]Henry Hulme Sevier inSt. Patrick's Cathedral, New York.[19] The couple honeymooned in Europe and settled in the Sevier villa onLong Island. When Robert Driscoll Sr. died in 1914, the Seviers returned to Texas to be involved in the Driscoll family business.[9] In 1917, Hal Sevier founded theAustin American-Statesman.
Hal remembered his wife's fondness forLake Como in Italy during their honeymoon, and sought to give her the Texas version. In August 1915, they bought28+1⁄2 acres onLake Austin atMount Bonnell overlooking theColorado River five miles (8 km) west ofAustin. The land had originally been purchased byStephen F. Austin who died before he could develop it. They chose the nameLaguna Gloria,[20] and Clara supervised the development of the estate and construction of the 15-room mansion,[21] which became Clara's showplace for entertaining visitors from around the world.
From 1922 to 1926, university student Mary Lubbock Lasswell[22] became a frequent visitor to Laguna Gloria. Mary described Clara as a magnetic personality with reddish-black hair and brown eyes, and who was "exceedingly outspoken". Lasswell remembered that both the Seviers were fond of Mexican and Spanish songs. Mary likened Clara to "an eagle among a flock ofpouter pigeons".
Clara closed Laguna Gloria[9] when her brother died in 1929 and the Seviers returned to the Palo Alto ranch headquarters. Clara managed the family's businesses and became president of Corpus Christi Bank and Trust Company.
In 1933, President Franklin Roosevelt appointed Hal Sevier as ambassador extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary to Chile. In 1935, the couple became legally separated. They never had any children. The couple divorced on July 7, 1937[23] and Clara resumed the use of her maiden name.
Driscoll returned from Europe in 1898[24] and settled in San Antonio. She was alarmed at the state of theAlamo, stating her opinion in theSan Antonio Express that "unsightly obstructions" near the Alamo should be removed to allow the Alamo to stand alone.
The public entrance known as the Alamo's mission chapel was already owned by theState of Texas, which had purchased the building from theRoman Catholic Church in 1883 and had given custody to the City of San Antonio. The city had made no improvements to the chapel structure and ownership did not include the long barracks (convento).
In 1903,Adina Emilia De Zavala enlisted Clara Driscoll to join theDaughters of the Republic of Texas and chair the De Zavala fundraising committee to negotiate the purchase of the long barracks that was owned by wholesale grocers Charles Hugo, Gustav Schmeltzer and William Heuermann.[25] The asking price was $75,000,[24] most of which came out of Clara Driscoll's bank account. On January 26, 1905, the state legislature approved andGovernor S.W.T Lanham signed legislation for state funding to preserve the Alamo property. The state reimbursed Clara Driscoll and on October 4, 1905, the governor formally conveyed the Alamo property, including the convento and the mission church, to the Daughters of the Republic of Texas.
A divide between two factions erupted over how the long barracks property was to be used. Driscoll and others[26] believed it was not part of the original structure and should be turned into a park. Clara offered to raze the building at her own expense. De Zavala was adamant that the long barracks was part of the original building and where the major part of the battle had occurred. In 1908, De Zavala had a stand-off with authorities inside the structure. By 1911,Governor Oscar Branch Colquitt[27] ordered the long barracks be restored to its original condition as it was in mission days. During the 1912 restoration,[28] workers discovered foundation work that verified De Zavala's instincts that the structure had indeed been an original part of the Alamo. However, Governor Colquitt was eventually unsuccessful in preserving the barracks building[29] and when he was out of town on business Lieutenant GovernorWilliam Harding Mayes allowed for the further removal of the second floor of the structure.[30][31]
Clara continued to work on behalf of the Alamo[24] for the rest of her life. In 1931, she again put up $70,000 of her own money to help the state legislature purchase more city property surrounding the shrine. In 1933, she backed down city engineers who wanted to purchase a portion of the Alamo property to widen Houston Street. By 1935, the persuasive Driscoll talked theCity of San Antonio Fire Department out of putting a new fire station adjacent to the Alamo. As president of the DRT in 1936, she oversaw Centennial celebrations of the shrine.
When Clara died in 1945, her body lay in state in the Alamo chapel.
Driscoll served as the Democratic party's national committeewoman from Texas 1922–1938 and supported her friend John Nance Garner's[32][33] 1940 bid for the Presidency. Garner's[34] campaign cost $165,000. She continued to support Franklin D. Roosevelt after he was reelected.
Upon her death,Time magazine[35] described Clara's political acumen:
Money Player. Politicians soon learned to respect her: she could drink, battle, cuss and connive with the best of them, outspend practically all of them. Uvalde's white-browed John Nance Garner became her great & good friend—in & out of smoke-filled rooms, they understood each other. She made quadrennial $25,000 donations to national campaigns, but know-how, not money, worked her up to national committeewoman.
Driscoll served as vice chairman of the Texas Centennial Exposition[36] executive board.
In 1939, Clara donated $92,000[37] to theTexas Federation of Women's Clubs, which paid off all debts against their headquarters known as The Mansion.[38] In response, committee workers declared October 4, 1939, as Clara Driscoll Day[39] inAustin. There was a reception, candle lighting, and unveiling of a portrait titled "Clara Driscoll, Patriot" by Corpus Christi artist Roy Miller.
Clara built the Hotel Robert Driscoll, which opened on May 25, 1942, in Corpus Christi,[40] to memorialize her brother. Clara maintained a penthouse suite in the hotel. The structure is now theWells Fargo Building.
In 1943, Clara deeded Laguna Gloria and a $5,000 gift to Texas Fine Arts Association Holding Company.[41]
A plaque in the Long Barrack at theAlamo in San Antonio honors Driscoll, with words from a resolution outlining her impact in preserving the Alamo from developers.[1]
TwoTexas Historical Markers honor Driscoll. Marker 6461 sits in front of the Texas Federation of Women’s Clubs building, at 2312 San Gabriel Avenue inAustin, erected in 1967 as part of the Outstanding Women of Texas series.[42][43] Marker 1287, erected in 1978, is found at site of the Driscoll family mausoleum at theAlamo Masonic Cemetery inSan Antonio.[44][45]
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