The Garten Verein Pavilion is a National Register of Historic Places-listed property in Galveston, Texas.
History
The Garten Verein Pavilion site was originally the homestead of Robert Mills, a leading financier of Texas before the Civil War. Financially ruined as a result of the Panic of 1873, the Galveston Garten-Verein, a German social club, acquired the Mills homestead in 1876. They converted the house to use as a club meeting hall, which included a bowling alley. They added a dance pavilion to the property in 1879, possibly designed by John Moser, a local German architect.[2]
By 1895, the Garten Verein landscaped the area around the pavilion with lawns and lines of trees. In addition to the dance pavilion and bowling, entertainment included tennis and croquet.[2]