Substantial damage to the building inspired newspaper publisher, William
Randolph Hearst, to hold a fundraiser at
the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York
City. The benefit included several wellknown, illustrious dignitaries, including
Samuel Clemens, better known as Mark
Twain, and the governor of Texas, Joseph D. Sayers. Raising nearly $50,000,
Hearst’s charity gala brought forth a
new orphan’s home restored by architect, George B. Stowe. The new building
showed a transformation from the Gothic
style to a Renaissance Aesthetic design
and continued to serve as an orphanage
until 1984. Through the years, it has survived many storms and has now been
given a new purpose by J.P. Bryan.
Bryan’s roots run deep in the history of
the state, going back to Emily Austin
Bryan Perry, sister of Stephen F. Austin,
the “Father of Texas.” A sixth-generation
Texan, J.P. Br X[