The Formative Years

It was clear from the time the Witte Museum opened to enthusiastic crowds on October 8, 1926, that its future would be shaped by both the community and the temperament of its director, Ellen Schulz (who married and became Ellen S. Quillin). This would not be a staid and stuffy place, but an eclectic and dynamic center of community learning. Ellen Quillin had achieved her goal, and armed with a $1 a year salary and a $600 a month budget, she set out to sustain her vision.

Visitors flocked to see the Art League's painting collection, the historical costumes and furniture installed by the Conservation Society, and the Attwater natural history collection displayed by the Museum Association along with Indian artifacts, miscellaneous stuffed birds, insects, plants, and minerals. The public also responded with generous donations-from ordinary household objects to a seventy-seven foot-long petrified log to fine paintings.

Though popular, the museum soon ran short of funds, and in spite of increased city funding, Ellen Quillin remained, of necessity, resourceful and frugal. When salaries were reduced, some employees simply moved into the museum. Exhibits were moved aside to make way for dances, barbecues were held on the museum grounds, and there were buggy rides and lectures. The nickles, dimes and quarters from these events kept the doors open, and after a year of operation, the San Antonio Express-News wrote that the museum "has been established admirably as an essential element of the school system and the community cultural life."

When the Great Depression seemed an insurmountable challenge, an unemployed herpetologist appeared at the museum and won the approval of Mrs. Quillin and her board for his unlikely proposal to construct a reptile garden. On opening day, 800 visitors paid 10 cents to see rattlesnakes and alligators corralled near the banks of the San Antonio River. Surprisingly, a rattlesnake fry held in 1934 also proved popular, and the unique fundraiser continued for 16 years. While these non-traditional fundraisers sustained the museum throughout the Depression, more traditional attractions were also introduced.

The grounds became a village when two log cabins were constructed and the Ruiz, Navarro and Twohig houses were moved to the museum. Under the Witte's roof, visitors could glimpse pioneer life in South Texas, marvel at a jenny flyer that soared over displays of butterflies and birds, and view regional paintings and old masters of Europe. Nowhere else in South Texas was there such a display of history, natural history and art. Amongst these exhibits, students of all ages and interests found their home.

School children came by the busload, while adults registered to study at the Museum School of Art under some of the region's finest artists. When the museum was compelled to close the school in the early days of World War II, Marion Koogler McNay suggested its relocation to the grounds of her home where it became known as the Art Institute. Over the years, the Witte could proudly claim to have incubated or substantially assisted other organizations as well. When there were no other venues in the community, the museum welcomed local artists and craftsmen to meet and display and sell their work, giving rise to the Craft Guild and other organizations.

In the 1930s, when money was scarce and the Big Bend was hardly accessible, Ellen Quillin helped supply and staff the Southwest Texas Archaeological Society's pioneering expeditions to the rugged Trans-Pecos region. These efforts attracted both attention and significant gifts, and new galleries were constructed throughout the 1940s and 1950s to accommodate the museum's rapidly expanding ethnographic, historical and art collections.

The Witte celebrated its 25th anniversary in 1951 with new offices and workspace for natural history collections, followed shortly by the construction of a new auditorium. In the mid-1950s, planning began to expand and remodel the Witte Museum beyond Ellen Quillin's early dreams.

When those projects were assured, and after 34 years of unselfish and tireless service, she announced her retirement. All agreed that her service to the community had been extraordinary. Proclaiming October 30, 1960, "Ellen S. Quillin Day," the City Council urged "all lovers of art and culture to join in honoring one who has done so much for San Antonio and who deserves the gratitude of all." A new era would now begin.

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