Nestled among the tall, ornamental historic structures on The Strand is a small, one-story building that’s easy to miss but has witnessed 150 years of Galveston history. One of the oldest buildings on The Strand, it was constructed in 1875 by Isidore LeClere (1815-1886), a brother-in-law of Michel Menard (1805-1856), one of the city's founders. 

 A veteran of the Army of the Republic of Texas, LeClere had it built as an office for an adjoining coal yard. Coal was a valuable commodity that played a crucial role in the city's early development. 

 Before the era of electric lights, gas from burned coal was used to power streetlamps and illuminate the homes of those who could afford such a luxury. The Galveston Gas Company, established in 1856, was the state’s first gas provider and initially relied on gas produced from heating coal. 

 LeClere had his flat-topped building constructed with Cedar Bayou bricks that were shipped to Galveston aboard two-masted schooners and the steamboat Beardstown, and delivered to the basin at the foot of Tremont Street. It cost $300 to construct. 

 The 14-by-16-foot brick office is finished in stucco and features a six-over-six sash window with wood shutters and a wooden 15-light door with a glass transom; each designed with an arched top. It utilized gas lighting and, although a functional office space, lacked a bathroom facility. 

 

 A Sanborn Fire Insurance map created in 1877 shows the building surrounded on its south and west sides by a coal yard. This area is currently the site of a private parking lot and pool area for the Panama Historic Lofts, located at the corner of Strand and 25th Street. 

 LeClere advertised that his operation, whose original address was Number 13 Strand before the street numbers changed, dealt in “all kinds of coal,” and could be delivered to any part of the city on short notice. By 1880, the company changed its name to LeClere & Son when Charles Valle LeClere (1853-1894), the only surviving son, joined the business. 

 David Fahey, owner of the nearby Gem Saloon, leased the coal operation after LeClere left to become vice-president of the Galveston Gas Company in 1884. LeClere passed away two years later. 

 LeClere’s widow, Marie Melli Valle (1827-1896), leased the structure to several businesses in the following years, including merchandise broker Max Herz and Luis A. Grelling, an agent for Morlein Christina Brewing Company of Cincinnati. Just before she died in 1896, she had a new floor installed in the building. 

 Between 1898 and 1900, three young African American entrepreneurs opened a lunch counter in the building named Brantley, Hudson & Company. Dennis Brantley, James Hudson, and Samuel Ross worked at Mallory Wharves and likely recognized the need for a spot where local workers could enjoy an afternoon meal. 

 Another young African American, Thornton N. Lewis, opened a barber shop at that location in 1900. However, that business came to an end due to the 1900 Storm, after which the structure required what was noted by the insurance company as “extensive” repairs. 

 For the following three years, a series of commission merchants utilized the building to sell items such as poultry, eggs, and game. 

 John Friery, a native of Ireland who arrived on the island in 1871, was the next tenant, utilizing the building as a space for the United States Government Claim office. He also offered the services of a notary public and Justice of the Peace. He continued to work at this location until he died in 1906 at the age of 76. 

 For the next three years, 2417 Strand served as both a workplace and a residence for Juan Ramirez. The native of Mexico immigrated to Galveston in 1895 and became a naturalized citizen quickly. 

 In 1906, at the age of 44, he opened the Juan Ramirez & Co. cigar manufactory at the address. It was likely during this time that a small addition at the rear of the building, which first appears on the Sanborn Fire map of 1912, was added to provide space for Juan to live with his wife Victoria and teenage son Joseph. 

 

 A notation on the map that reads “Ir. Cl.” reveals that the addition was “iron clad” or constructed of metal or iron cladding. 

 Commission merchants once again operated out of the building after Ramirez moved his operation and home to Winnie Street. From 1909 to 1912, when the Panama Hotel was built next door, George A. Reyder officed there, followed by George A. and John Peter Almeras from 1913 to 1921. 

 After five years of sitting vacant, the small structure became the office of T Messenger Service, owned by Roy Taylor from 1926 to 1928. During this time, Taylor frequently ran advertisements in local newspapers offering employment to “boys with bicycles” who would courier messages and packages around the downtown district. 

 Throughout the Great Depression, the structure, like so many in the area, sat empty. It did not reappear in Galveston city directories until 1947, when it was listed as an office for an automobile dealer. 

 For the next three decades, the building was vacant as often as it was occupied, being home to several short-term tenants, including Warren M. Bremmer’s saw and lawnmower filing/sharpening shop, the Santa Fe Employment Group, and Galveston Fireman’s Federal Credit Union. 

 It has since been home to a variety of real estate offices, galleries, a warehouse space, and gift shops. When it was home to the Nonus Collection, it was advertised as “the Biggest Little Shop on the Island.” 

 Today, passersby are more likely to see tourists stopping to photograph the small, picturesque building than see anyone enter or leave. It is currently owned by the Galveston Historical Foundation, which uses it for booth space during special events on The Strand. Be sure to stop by during the annual Dickens on the Strand for a peek inside this tiny piece of Galveston’s history. 

 The unassuming building has weathered countless storms and quiet mornings of 150 Galveston years and continues to stand. The 1900 Storm Survivor plaque and Ike High Water marker on its facade only hint at the history it has witnessed.

 Its tiny frame holds the echoes of generations, a testament to the island's resilience and the quiet power of Galveston’s endurance.