Sunday, June 08, 2008

Mansion early Sunday and left much of the 152-year-old home charred and severely damaged, the

state fire marshal said.

"We have some evidence that indicates that we do have an intentionally set fire," said state

Fire Marshal Paul Maldonado. "So we believe that we may be looking at a criminal act here."

Calling it a "devastating loss to the state of Texas," Maldonado did not offer details on how the fire

may have been set or whether authorities had identified a suspect.

Security cameras are set up around the mansion, which sits downtown on a lot the size of a city

block, and investigators were interviewing people who were nearby and might have noticed

suspicious activity.

"We're going to come get the person that's responsible for causing this damage," Maldonado said.

About 100 firefighters responded when an alarm when off just before 2 a.m. The mansion has been

unoccupied since Perry and his wife, Anita, temporarily moved out last fall so the mansion could

undergo a $10 million renovation. It was scheduled to be completed next year.

Texas Governor's Mansion Fire No injuries were reported, and there was no immediate financial

estimate of the damage.

Small hot spots were still smoldering more than six hours after the fire began. Puffs of smoke

billowed from the building.

State officials said damage to the Greek Revival-style mansion — first occupied by Gov. Elisha

Marshall Pease — was extensive.

The roof buckled because of the fire and the massive amount of water used to extinguish it. The mansion

was left black with heavy burns. Parts of the six 29-foot columns at the front of the home and much of

the front wall of the mansion were charred black. In some places the original color of the brick could be

seen where white paint had burned off.

Perry spokesman Robert Black said much of the wood inside the mansion was longleaf pine that is

"completely irreplaceable." He said some interior ornamentation is damaged beyond repair.

All the historic furnishings and heirlooms had been removed from the mansion for the renovation project.

Braun & Butler Construction was working on the maintenance and renovations. Among the improvement

projects were an overhaul of the plumbing, removal of lead paint and asbestos and installation of a fire

sprinkler system, among other things.

The mansion was equipped with a fire alarm. A state trooper who was on the mansion's grounds as part

of regular security detail heard an alarm go off, then saw flames and called the fire department, said

Tela Mange, spokeswoman for the Texas Department of Public Safety.

Officials would not comment on how many security officers were present when the fire erupted. They said

there is no evidence any direct threat to the governor was intended.

The governor uses the mansion as a home and for official functions, such as hosting heads of state or

other dignitaries and for gathering with lawmakers and the news media.

The Perrys have been living in a rented home elsewhere in Austin during the renovation work. They were in

Stockholm, Sweden, on Sunday as part of a European economic development trip and were scheduled to

return to Texas on Tuesday.

The governor was contacted shortly after the fire was reported, and his chief of staff was keeping him

updated on the situation, Black said.

"His first concern was if anyone got hurt," Black said, adding that Perry also expressed sadness over "the

loss of a Texas treasure."

The mansion is a national historic landmark. Built in 1856, it is the oldest continually used executive

residence west of the Mississippi, according to the group Friends of the Governor's Mansion, which works

to preserve and show the public the historic building.

The large trees surrounding the two-story mansion made it difficult for firefighters to position their equipment,

Fire Department spokeswoman Dawn Clopton said.

The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms was sending in a national response team to assist the

investigation. Maldonado asked that anyone who has information about the fire to call a hotline at 1-877-434-7345.

Governor's Mansion in Texas Burns:No ACCIDENT?

Early this morning, I got news that the Historic Governor's Mansion was on fire. The mansion had been going thru

an extension $10 million dollar expansion and Govenor Rick Perrry and the First Lady of Texas had moved out

during the renovation. There are a few that know side 3 of my plantation house was designed after the front side of

the Historic Texas Mansion. And calls started coming in saying 'turn on fox news, "that looks like your house".

My only comment is" It is really sad when arson occurs, as you can never recapture a part of history lost or the

true history once it is gone, it is irreplaceable. It is a sad day in Texas, but they will re-build". The Governor's

Mansion was originally built in the 1880s and was built using Greek Revival architecture, very erect and statute.

When I decided to build in Montana, I did it for several reasons, no tornadoes and the Mighty Mississippi was not

in the same state. My house which I designed as it sits today was after touring 90 plantation houses in the US with

two sides based on two of my favorite plantation houses which I visit often in Illinois and in Mississippi. The cost to 

build my house today would exceed $5 million due to the cost of custom materials and the location of the house. 

It was extremely difficult to get the fiberglass columns hand made with specially designed scamozzi caps with

unique star designs shipped to Montana. It took 9 months to make the columns and it took a month to install the

columns. Each column pad is 7 feet deep with a three foot wide base pad to support the column weight for each

structural column which will support 100K pounds. Our house is and remains the only modern day post Civil War

Patriotic Plantation House in AMERICA & we love it! All who tour the grounds & estate are amazed with the history.

Miss JR