Abandoned church on 902 South Staples Street. A Corpus Christi oddity examined.

The abandoned church on 902 South Staples Street in Corpus Christi, Texas is a Corpus Christi oddity. The church has sat abandoned for many years without any renovations or activity. Oddly enough City of Corpus Christi has not condemned the church building.

According to data from the Nueces CAD website, the abandoned church had been sold twice on a substitute trustee deed during the 1980s. The two times this church was sold on a substitute trustee deed were in 1987 and 1989. Rose Garza had owned the property and church twice for almost a decade. The last improvement done was to the exterior wall in 2000. No other improvements have been done since then. Today the property is part of a limited partnership called Halstead-Webb LP. The property is zoned as commercial. (Ref: https://propaccess.trueautomation.com/clientdb/Property.aspx?cid=75&prop_id=200018606)

clustrmaps.com has the church listed under “zoned as a single family dwelling”. The size of the living area is 1,471 square feet. The property is located on a plot of 5,001 square feet. The lot is 90 feet in depth and 25 feet in width. Its perimeter is 230 feet in size, based on calculated data on the length and width of the land lot. The list of materials that were used to construct this building includes stucco. The foundation of the dwelling is made from a concrete. The last improvement done was to the exterior wall in 2000. Concrete was re-plastered onto the exterior wall. So this church is zoned as a single family dwelling in a commercial lot. That is where the commercial zoning comes from. (Ref: https://clustrmaps.com/a/ujti/)

A Mexican church called New Religious Mission Church first opened at the location of 902 South Staples Street on June 2, 1961. Corpus Christi Caller-Times announced the organization of New Religious Mission Church in the classified ads on Thursday, August 3, 1961. The reverend was Rev. Oscar Mirabal. Operation hours of this church were from 7 AM to 11 PM daily. The hours never changed. The address for New Religious Mission Church was 902 S. Staples St, Corpus Christi, Tex. (Ref: https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/22111015/)

However the New Religious Mission Church would not be open for a very long time. The church would operate until 1964.

The building also served as a clothing store called Acapulco Curias from 1962 to 1970 before being home to a bilingual newspaper called El Progesso and Mexican novelty shop called Dora Cantu's Golden Gate Mexican Curios/Mexico’s Novelties. (Ref: https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/27897826/)

Mrs. Dora Zepeda initiated Acapulco Curios at 902 S. Staples. Most of her objects were imported from Mexico. Included were are herbs, incenses, pots, pitchers, religious items, cactus miracle plants, Aztec idols, women's, children's and infants, and many other items. (Ref: https://www.newspapers.com/clip/11656705/the-corpus-christi-caller-times/)

Dora Cantu's Golden Gate Mexican Curios/Mexico’s Novelties sold piñatas, novelties, glass, wrought iron, oil merchandise, and Mexican pottery. Mexican pottery was sold at a price of 50¢ cents a piece. Her store was open every day from 9 AM to 5 PM. Dora Cantu's Golden Gate Mexican Curios/Mexico’s Novelties was operated by Dora Cantu. (Ref: https://www.newspapers.com/image/?clipping_id=18376259)

R. B. Carnes dba AAA Plumbing and Heallna Company filed a lawsuit against Dora Cervera Cantu for unpaid expenses on October 30, 1971. The court implemented a levy on her levy upon the following described tracts and parcels on the date thereof November 30, 1971. She went bankrupt in late 1971. Dora Cantu's Golden Gate Mexican Curios/Mexico’s Novelties would shut down in 1972. (Ref: https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/21031334/)


902 S Staples St was home to a bilingual newspaper called El Progesso which was printed in the languages of both Spanish and English. El Progesso was ran by Dora Cervera Cantu. She was the publisher, journalist, and counselor in public relations. 902 S Staples St was where her new office was located. Her phone numbers were 512-888-5156 and 512-883-0996. (Ref: https://www.newspapers.com/image/?clipping_id=1936674)

El Progesso operated for a number of years with a high Mexican-American readership. The circulation for El Progesso was 50,000 weekly circulation. (Ref: https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/Digitization/53320NCJRS.pdf)


A new Mexican shop called ROBERTS MEXICAN MERCADO would open at this location in 1975. Operation hours were from 9 AM to 6 PM. The phone number was 512-883-0996. ROBERTS MEXICAN MERCADO operated at this location from 1975 to 1977. (Ref: https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/31298348/)

The building was home to a Montgomery Ward department store for a few short years. Montgomery Ward had used the building on a lease. (Ref: https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/21020934/)

In 1978, Robert Mirabal and his sister, Rose Mirabal Garza, decided to resurrect the family tradition, and they opened a small printing shop at 902 South Staples and named the new business Garza-Mirabal Printers Unlimited. At first, the brother and sister were the only employees; they had learned from their father the wisdom of plowing back the first profits into the company and always investing in the best equipment. In 1985, Rosie sold her part to her brother so that she could spend more time serving her beloved family and her community. Her enthusiasm and acts of charity earned her the titles of philanthropist, businesswoman, and civic leader. Printers Unlimited, Incorporated, had grown faster than any other printing company in South Texas. In 1997, Printers Unlimited printed its first hard-bound edition for the Tejano Music Awards which took place in San Antonio. The successful company has been honored by the Corpus Christi Advertising Foundation with its Addy award for excellence in the field. (Ref: www.legis.state.tx.us/tlodocs/75R/billtext/doc/SR00761F.doc)

Today the church building and property is owned by a limited partnership called Halstead-Webb LP. Halstead-Webb LP is responsible for managing the property.

This abandoned church is located at 902 South Staples Street, Corpus Christi, Texas, US 78404.