San Antonio, Bexar County
(1852 – 1966) Established in 1852 in frontier San Antonio by 4 members of the Society of Mary: Brothers Andrew Edel, John Baptist Laignous, Nicholas Koening, and Xavier Mauclerc--all natives of France. Construction of this building began in fall, 1852, and its doors opened March 1, 1853, to more than 100 students of all creeds. Structure then had 4 rooms. Late in 1854 brothers Eligius Beyerer and Charles Francis joined the faculty. Francis, known as "The great builder", devoted 54 years of his life to San Antonio and finished the building of the college. By 1870 it was a well-proportioned structure of rough limestone, typically Eropean in Style. Once the largest building complex in San Antonio, St. Mary's College educated many prominent south Texans, including 8 mayors of San Antonio. From 1934 to 1966 the buildings housed St. Mary's University School of law, which,under Dean Ernest A. Raba, became a leading legal institution of the southwest. St. Mary's is the only college to have served the city for 113 consecutive years. After 1966, when the building was acquired by La Posada Motor Motels, a 6-story addition was built at the rear and the exterior made Spanish in style.