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Speros Martel personal papers

 Collection
Identifier: MS 0615
Finding aid note: Stored offsite at the Library Service Center and require 24-hour notice for retrieval. Please contact the Woodson Research Center at 713-348-2586 or woodson@rice.edu for more information.

Scope and Contents Note

This collection consists of two series, Martel's business and personal papers. His business papers include ledgers from 1932-1970. His personal papers include geneology of his wife's family, documents planning Martel's funeral, his marriage certificate, and military discharge papers, and photographs.

Dates

  • 1918-2012

Creator

Conditions Governing Access

This material is open for research.

Conditions Governing Access

Stored offsite at the Library Service Center and require 24-hour notice for retrieval. Please contact the Woodson Research Center at 713-348-2586 or woodson@rice.edu for more information.

Conditions Governing Use

Permission to publish from this material must be obtained from the Woodson Research Center, Fondren Library, Rice University.

Biographical/Historical Note

Speros P. Martel was born on September 3, 1892 (or 1894) in Cephalonia, Greece. He immigrated to New York in the early 1900s. Martel worked as a runner on Wall Street, sold newspapers on Time Square, and cleaned a saloon for room and board.

Enlisting at Camp Logan on June 15, 1918, Martel fought in World War I as a private in the 37th Company of the 165th Depot Brigade of the National Army. He might have been an interpreter.

After the war, Martel permanently moved to Houston. He waited tables at the Rice Hotel and the Houstonian Cafe. He later co-owned the Blue Bell Restaurant from 1927-1932.

Martel married Marian (Mamie) Fox Twyman in 1932. After 1932, since he now handled his wife’s financial affairs, Martel began to focus on real estate and investments. In 1946, he leased Mrs. Martel’s land to Jim Jamail and Sons grocery store, which became one of the premier groceries in Houston.

Mamie Martel died in 1956. Speros Martel never remarried and had no other family in the Houston area.

Until his own death in 1995, Martel gave money to Annunciation Greek Orthodox Church, Rice University to establish Rice professorships, as well as Texas Children’s Hospital to create the Speros P. Martel Leukocyte Biology Laboratory. In 1998, the Marian and Speros Martel Foundation donated funds to build the Marian and Speros Martel College at Rice University.

--taken from a letter by Ralph S. O'Connor and a biography included in Martel's papers.

Extent

0.5 Linear Feet (1 box)

Language of Materials

English

Additional Description

Abstract

This collection consists of the business and personal papers of Houston businessman and Rice University donor Speros Martel.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Donated by Melissa Kean in 2013.

Accruals Note

Additional materials are not expected for this collection.

Subjects

Record Groups

Related Names

Creator

Finding Aid & Administrative Information

Title
Guide to the Speros Martel personal papers, 1918-2012
Status
Completed
Author
Norie Guthrie
Date
2014
Description rules
Describing Archives: A Content Standard
Language of description
English
Script of description
Latin
Language of description note
English

Repository Details

Repository Details

Part of the Woodson Research Center, Rice University, Houston, Texas Repository

https://library.rice.edu/woodson
Contact:
Fondren Library MS-44, Rice University
6100 Main St.
Houston Texas 77005 USA

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Harmful Content Statement
© 2023 Woodson Research Center
Fondren Library, Rice University
Physical Address: 6100 Main, Houston, Texas 77005-1827
Mailing Address: MS-44, P.O. Box 1892, Houston, Texas 77251-1892