The corpus christi lighthouse
The site for The Chamberlain dates back to 1857 as the site for the original Corpus Christi Lighthouse. In the late 1850s, Col. John M. Moore began dredging operations in the bay to create a large harbor for Corpus Christi. The U.S. Lighthouse Service purchased this site from J. Burnside and Co. on March 13, 1857 and soon built a brick lighthouse to serve as a beacon for vessels approaching the new port.
The SOMICO BUILDING
After the Lighthouse outlived its usefulness, it was removed from the skyline. In 1953 the Southern Minerals Corp. had a vision for a headquarters; the building was named SOMICO. The style of the architecture, as originally reported by The Caller Times, was described as “Southern Modern” and the design of the building included ideas suggested by the Southern Minerals President. The building was located on the bluff with unobstructed views of the bay and remains as one of the most unique buildings in the Corpus Christi downtown vernacular.
The H-E-B Company
In 1940, H-E-B company headquarters moved from the Rio Grande Valley to Corpus Christi in order to centralize distribution to its growing territory. In 1942, the year Howard E. Butt installed air-conditioning in stores and introduced frozen foods, H-E-B also opened the first store under the name H-E-B, in San Antonio. In 1971, H-E-B moved its headquarters to the SOMICO Building and remained there until 1985 when the overall headquarters relocated to San Antonio, TX.
The chamberlain
In 2019, The Frazier Family Companies purchased the building with a vision for the future. The exterior will maintain its original historical facade while the interior will be reimagined. Custom lighting, inlaid custom mosaics, creative industrial spaces, and a one-of-a-kind rooftop event space—among others—will attract the next generation of makers and thinkers. Presently under renovation, the anticipated completion date is mid-2021.
