2022-07-17 TRR Rally Wrap & Fulton Mansion

I didn't plan on a Hitchup Breakfast because I thought only one person was actually leaving first thing in the morning. Instead six of us decided to go to JJ's for breakfast. We figured we would beat the church crowd by going before 9 AM but many of the them must have breakfast out before church as we had to wait a bit. We ended up at two adjoining tables which was okay. The choices and food were great.

Elaine and I decided to visit the Fulton Mansion for a tour. It was her first time and I haven't been for a few years. This mansion was very far ahead of its time in terms of conveniences of the time. They had flush toilets and running water for sinks and tubs upstairs. The last hurricane did some damage but you would never know it now. First we visited the little museum store and got our passes.

They have period clothes that you could try on. Elaine gave this outfit a try. We both decided that we would have found some way to go without all the corsets and many layers of clothes that ladies in the 1800's and early 1900's had to wear. Several women who were already there when we arrived spent a lot of time, dressing a dummy in all the period clothes available. it was a challenge to figure out the order some of the pieces had to be put on in order to work.

The dining room and a little nook at the back of the house had replicas of period food set up as well as the furniture. Not all the furniture belonged to the house owners but it is all from the right period.

Running water was unusual for the house time period. Check out the Onion Skin toilet paper.

This tub with running water was absolutely huge and very deep.

Beds were ornate but only double bed size even in the master bedroom. 

The house was called Oakhurst and it was purchased in 1976 for $150,000. It required quite a bit of restoration and didn't open as a museum until 1983.

The house was owned by the Davidson's, the Herring's, and the May's after the Fulton Family.

Therre is one room in the house that was left unfinished with the walls and part of the floor left open so you can see the construction. I've always thought it was very interesting that each time the property sold, less land was included and, at one time, there was actually an RV park in the front yard. You can see it in this post card picture.

The real "work" areas of the house were located in the basement and there is a description of each of the rooms and their purpose.

There were also drying racks and ironing setups in this room.

The cistern rooms stored water that was pumped to the top of the house. This is how they had running water and flush toilets.

The pantry is definitely a big part of the house. A relative with a store delivered food on a regular basis.

This would explain the food in cans versus home canned.

They had "central" heat in the house which was maintained in the basement and rose through the chimney to come out of the fireplaces upstairs. The fireplaces were not actually used as regular fireplaces.

So what is the difference between a pantry and a larder. Well, a larder is actually a cold room like a giant early refridgerator.

The area under the countertop was filled with ice to keep the food cold.

Food was cooked in the basement and brought upstairs on a dumbwaiter. The staff ate in the kitchen.

 It's a very interesting tour if you are ever in the Rockport/Fulton area. There are docents in the house that tell you about the rooms and the family.

Dinner was definitely leftovers on Sunday night. We had lots of pizza and numerous other things. More time was spent in the pool.

Final Days at the Rockport Flocking

Sunday we visited the Old Fulton Seafood Café and Deli for lunch. We were a little surprised when the GPS led us to a restaurant in a strip mall; however, when we went inside it was nice. They have a very high rating from several sources like Trip Advisor. Our waiter told us that they were located on the beach in Fulton until Hurricane Harvey. Everyone agreed the food was great and so was the service. MJ was the last one served, a bit after the rest of us....the waiter apologized and said he didn't like the way the first plate looked so he had them redo it.
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Next on our agenda was a visit to the Fulton Mansion. From this picture, you really don't see much damage.

But then, a view of the roof changes things. Hurricane Harvey occurred over a year ago but the Rockport-Fulton area is still recovering. The hurricane tore off several chimneys which opened holes into the roof. Right now, all the furniture is wrapped up in the center of each room. Walls had to be replastered and it was too wet to do that for some time. By then the first roof contractor was no longer available so new bids had to be sent out. The mansion is open and you can see more of the details of the walls and trim without the furniture blocking the view. Entry is free until the repair work is complete and it is definitely still worth a visit.

The Education and History Center along with the gift shop are in great shape. We had a great time watching two young girls dress this manikin from the skin out. They were shocked at how many pieces of clothing the ladies had to wear.

We also toured downtown Rockport. Almost all of the stores are repaired and open. This lovely mural is on the wall near the coffee shop on the main street.

Most of our group left on Monday morning but Carolyn, Mary Jane, and I stayed several more days before we headed east to another RV rally but that is another story. We gave the Apple Dumpling Deli a try for lunch and would definitely recommend them. Think about splitting a sandwich like Mary Jane and I did as they are huge!

Our last afternoon, we spent some time painting some rocks. Sorry, no pictures of those. We also tried one more time to have supper at Steer Burger. Once before during this rally, and once at a previous rally, we managed to catch them on a day they were closed. They have a really high rating and prices are reasonable. Their rating is very well deserved......great burgers. You order your burgers from the stand outside and they bring them to you inside a house with picnic tables.

Our goal for this rally was to get together with friends and have a good time while we helped the Rockport community in their recovery from Hurricane Harvey. Please visit.....you will find lots of businesses for shopping and great restaurants. They put their initial efforts into rebuilding their tourism areas. Residential areas still need work and recovery there is ongoing. We met a new member for our group....Marlene. She was in town to help with rebuilding efforts as a part of this group. They still need lots of help and you can work as much or as little as you want. And they can definitely make use of any skills you have from data input, answering phones, to carpentry, etc.

The Historic Fulton Mansion

I was in Rockport about four years ago and looking forward to seeing the Fulton Mansion but it was covered in scaffolding during a huge remodel so I was glad for the chance to come back.

The house was built between 1874 and 1877 by George Fulton and his wife Harriet and was originally called "Oakhurst". It is French Second Empire style with plank walls and shell aggregate basementand a mansard roof.

The tour starts in a building behind the mansion with a lot of historical information.

Not surprising that cattle ranching started it all although you don't always think of that when you are on the coast.

The laundry room was in the basement of the mansion but it was pretty light since a good part of the basement sits above the ground.

Pantry storage room.

The fuel storage room was unique since few houses had central heat like the Fulton Mansion. This was only one of the many innovative features of the house.

This room is the larder which is like a refrigerator where perishable food was stored. The walls were thick and water circulated around blocks of ice.

Next up is the butler's pantry with a description below.

The dining room included the Fulton's original china which had a rose band pattern and the letter "F" on it. Several of the chairs were originals.

The fireplaces were the heat registers where the central heat was ducted from the Coleman furnace in the basement. Each one was finished differently and were very ornate.

I think this was the office/library.

There was a small conservatory for plants.

This is the master bedroom.

This is part of the Holden bedroom where the two daughters would stay when they visited. Annie and Hattie married two brothers....Eldridge and Charles Holden.

One of the rooms was left in the unrestored state so you could see how extensive the renovation was.

Another view of the Holden bedroom.

The Fulton House has two and a half bathrooms with hot and cold running water and three flush toilets with a septic tank buried outside.

Rainwater was collected on the roof for the copper-lined tub.

The sitting room.

The tour was very interesting. We noted in the renovation room that a trailer park was located on the front lawn of the house prior to when the state took it over in 1979.  Had to include a shot of Carolyn in Anita's Slingshot as that is how she traveled over to see the Fulton House.