Texas Historical Marker #10803
West Mansion. Lumber, oil, and ranching tycoon James Marion West (1871-1941) and his wife, Jessie Dudley (1871-1953), hired eminent Houston architect Joseph Finger to design this 17,000-square foot house as headquarters for their 30,000-acre ranch. Built in 1929-30, it is an excellent example of the Italian renaissance revival style. It features exceptional ironwork by Berger & Son, classical pediments and arched windows. Subsequent owners include Humble Oil and Rice University. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1993 #10803
3301 NASA Rd. 1, Webster, TX, United States
Texas Historical Marker #10758
Seito and Kiyoaki Saibara. Contributions to the Texas rice industry: Seito Saibara (1861-1939), former president of Doshisha University in Kyoto, Japan, and first Christian member of the Japanese Diet (Parliament). Arrived in the United States in 1901 to study theology, and with the desire to establish a Japanese colony in America. Saibara came to Texas in August 1903 at the invitation of the Houston Chamber of Commerce to advise farmers on the cultivation of rice, which was emerging as a major cash crop. He decided rice farming was the ideal business for a colony, leased this tract of land (which he later purchased), and sent for his family. The oldest son, Kiyoaki Saibara (1884-1972), brought from Japan 300 pounds of Shinriki seed, a variety superior to native rice; and together, father and son planted a field near the canal (1/2 mile NE). Their first crops were utilized primarily for distribution as seed in Texas and Louisiana. The Saibaras built a house (250 yards S), and several families soon moved here from Japan, but the colonization effort failed because of disillusionment and homesickness of the new colonists. Seito Saibara aided the growth of the Texas rice industry with improved rice strains and agricultural techniques until his death, and Kiyoaki Saibara continued new developments until his retirement in 1964. #10758
?, Webster, TX, United States