Google
Book Appointment!
Fence installation · Silk Stocking Historic District

Fence & Gate Installation in Silk Stocking, Galveston, TX

Painted picket and ornamental metal front fences, cedar and iron privacy fences, and gates for homes in the Silk Stocking Historic District around 25th Street. Here the first question is which way your house faces, because that decides where the low front fence goes and where the tall one can.

  • Reviewed Sept 27, 2026
  • Source: City of Galveston Design Standards for Historic Properties
  • Interactive fence-run planner
Call (346) 910-8641Plan your fence
Black metal fence with a looped top rail between cream stucco pillars in front of a lawn and a two-story house
A black metal fence with a looped top between stucco pillars. In a Silk Stocking front yard, staff can approve a metal fence up to 48 inches.
The short answer

Mustang Fencing Services installs fences and gates in the Silk Stocking Historic District, a City of Galveston local historic district created in 1975 with 25th Street (Rosenberg) as its core. It covers all or part of nineteen blocks. A new fence needs a Certificate of Appropriateness before the building permit, under the same design standards as the other local districts. City staff can approve a painted wood picket or metal front fence up to 48 inches, a matching corner-side fence up to 4 feet, and at a non-corner side or the rear, solid cedar up to 6 feet plus 2 feet of framed lattice or iron up to 8 feet. What is different here is the layout: the City notes that many Silk Stocking houses face the numbered north-south streets, with north-south alleys, so the “front yard” is often on 24th, 25th or 26th Street rather than on an avenue.

1975Silk Stocking designated a local historic district, with 25th Street (Rosenberg) at its core
19Blocks, in whole or in part, in the district
186Buildings and other resources recorded in the City’s 2015 survey
48 inFront-fence height City staff can approve (painted wood picket or metal)

Sources: City of Galveston, Silk Stocking Historic District page and “A Property Owner’s Guide to Galveston’s Historic Districts”; Design Standards for Historic Properties; Historic Resources Survey (2015).

What we install in Silk Stocking

According to the City, the district got its name because its residents could afford to buy silk stockings. It was first developed in the early 1870s as a mix of houses, a corner store, vacant blocks and industrial sites. The Texas Cotton Press dominated its core until the company went bankrupt; the land was then subdivided and the lots sold at auction in 1898. Building continued into the 1920s, despite the 1900 Storm, which left a massive wall of debris along Avenue N½. The City’s 2015 survey describes the district as best known for its large, opulent Queen Anne houses. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996. For a fence, that usually means a front fence in scale with a large, ornate house, and privacy kept to the side and rear. We install:

We don’t offer vinyl here: the City’s design standards say not to install vinyl fencing in its historic districts.

Plan your Silk Stocking fence, run by run

Tell us which way the house faces and the size of the lot. You’ll get the length of each fence run and the height and material limit City staff can approve for it. Measure your own lot; the numbers below are only a starting example.

0LINEAR FEET IN TOTAL
Your front yard
Front runs
Side and rear runs
Gates

How it works: the front runs are the front property line plus both sides of the front yard. The side and rear runs start at the front face of the house: the two short returns from the house to the side lines, both side lines back to the rear, and the rear line. Gate openings are counted inside the runs. The height and material limits are the “Administrative Approval of Fences” list in the City of Galveston Design Standards for Historic Properties. A planning aid, not a survey or a permit decision: the Historic Preservation Officer and the Landmark Commission decide.

Which way does your house face?

In Galveston’s other residential historic districts, most houses face the east-west avenues. The City’s design standards single Silk Stocking out: “Unlike the other residential historic districts, many houses face the numbered north-south streets, and alleys, where they exist, run north-south.” They also list long north-south blocks, dead-end streets that create hidden pockets, and a greater variety of block shapes than in the East End or Lost Bayou. (The City’s 2015 survey puts it the other way, saying most houses face north or south onto the east-west streets. Both are City documents, and on the ground it varies block by block.)

That matters because the fence rules follow the house, not the compass:

  • The front yard is the side your front door faces. If that is 25th Street, the low front fence runs along 25th Street, and the lines to the north and south are side lines shared with your neighbors.
  • On a corner lot, the other street is the corner side yard. There, staff approval needs a fence that matches the front fence and is 4 feet or under.
  • The alley, where there is one, runs north-south behind the houses that face the numbered streets. Where there isn’t one, the rear line is shared with the lot behind.
Plan of a long north-south block between two numbered streets, with east-west avenues at top and bottom and a north-south alley down the middle. Most lots face the numbered streets, so their front yards are shaded along the streets on the left and right. A corner lot at the top left faces the avenue, so its front yard runs along the avenue and its side along the numbered street is the corner side yard. On one highlighted lot facing the numbered street, a low front fence runs along the street and the front yard, and a taller privacy fence runs from the front face of the house back to a gate on the alley. A legend shows the front yard, the 48-inch front fence, the 4-foot corner side fence and side and rear privacy.EAST–WEST AVENUEEAST–WEST AVENUENUMBERED STREET (NORTH–SOUTH)NUMBERED STREET (NORTH–SOUTH)ALLEY (NORTH–SOUTH, WHERE ONE EXISTS)FACES THENUMBERED STREET;GATE ON THE ALLEYFACES THEAVENUEN FRONT YARD (THE SIDE THE HOUSE FACES) FRONT: 48 IN MAX CORNER SIDE: MATCH FRONT, 4 FT SIDE/REAR PRIVACY
S-1
DrawingA long Silk Stocking block: houses facing the numbered streets
BasisDesign Standards for Historic Properties, Ch. 5 (Silk Stocking design traditions) and the fence standards
ScaleNot to scale
Schematic, not to scale and not a survey. It shows the pattern the City describes for Silk Stocking: many houses facing the numbered streets, with north-south alleys where they exist.
New cedar fence and braced gate meeting the red brick wall of a house
A cedar fence and braced walk gate meeting a brick wall, from a Mustang job in Galveston. A side return like this, set back from the front face of the house, is where a Silk Stocking privacy fence starts.

The fence standards, in one chart

Silk Stocking uses the same Design Standards for Historic Properties as the East End, Lost Bayou and Strand/Mechanic districts. (Our Lost Bayou page walks through them in full, and Cedar Lawn is a conservation district where they don’t apply.) In short: painted wood picket is the preferred front fence, and metal is appropriate when it suits the building. Chain link, vinyl, mixing wood and metal styles, and heavy brick posts without historic documentation are listed as inappropriate. A fence that meets one of the criteria below can be approved by City staff; anything else goes to the Landmark Commission.

Heights City staff can approve, by location

Maximum fence height on the administrative-approval list, in feet. Taller, or a different material or unusual design, goes to the Landmark Commission.

Front yard, wood or metal4 ftCorner side, matching front4 ftAround a pool5 ftSide/rear, solid cedar6 ftCedar + 2 ft lattice8 ftSide/rear, iron8 ft
Source: City of Galveston, Design Standards for Historic Properties, “Administrative Approval of Fences” (48 in shown as 4 ft). The approval chart in the same document lists 48 in against the cedar privacy row; confirm cedar heights with the Historic Preservation Officer. The City’s zoning limits are 4 ft solid or 5 ft if 60% transparent in a front yard, and 8 ft elsewhere (LDR Sec. 2.501).
Plan of one lot with the numbered street and sidewalk on the left, a north-south alley on the right, and neighbors to the north and south. The shaded front yard runs from the property line to the front face of the house and porch. A low front fence, labeled picket or metal 48 inches maximum, on the line and not in the right-of-way, runs along the street and the two sides of the front yard. From the front face of the house, a taller fence, labeled solid cedar 6 feet plus 2 feet framed lattice or iron up to 8 feet, runs along both side lines to the rear, with a side gate and an alley gate. A note says parking goes at the rear or side, so a vehicle gate belongs on the alley, and where there is no alley the rear line is shared with the lot behind. NUMBERED STREET (THE HOUSE FACES THIS WAY) SIDEWALK / CITY RIGHT-OF-WAY NORTH–SOUTH ALLEY NEIGHBOR TO THE NORTH NEIGHBOR TO THE SOUTH PORCH House FRONT FACE FRONT YARD:PICKET ORMETAL,48 IN MAXON THE LINE,NOT IN THERIGHT-OF-WAY SIDE GATE ALLEY GATE SIDE AND REAR(NOT A CORNER):SOLID CEDAR 6 FT+ 2 FT FRAMED LATTICE,OR IRON UP TO 8 FT PARKING AT THE REAR OR SIDE: A VEHICLE GATE BELONGS ON THE ALLEY FRONT YARD DEPTH N WHERE THEREIS NO ALLEY,THE REAR LINEIS SHAREDWITH THE LOTBEHIND
S-2
DrawingOne lot facing a numbered street, with a north-south alley
BasisDesign Standards for Historic Properties, fence standards and 3.7 parking; LDR Sec. 2.501
ScaleNot to scale
Not to scale and not a survey. Heights shown are the limits City staff can approve under the design standards.

Silk Stocking lot situations

Your lotWhere the front fence goesSide and rear
House faces a numbered street, mid-blockAlong the numbered street and the sides of the front yard: picket or metal, 48 inSide lines shared with neighbors north and south; cedar 6 + 2 ft or iron 8 ft behind the front face
House faces an avenue, mid-blockAlong the avenue: picket or metal, 48 inSame side and rear limits. On a mixed block, the lot behind may face a numbered street
Corner lotAlong the street the house facesThe other street is the corner side yard: match the front fence, 4 ft, for staff approval
Corner lot whose side street is 23rd (Tremont)Along the street the house facesStill a corner side yard: 4 ft matching fence for staff approval. More screening from commercial uses goes to the Commission
No alley behindUnchangedRear line shared with the lot behind; plan vehicle access from the side, not a new driveway onto the street you face
On a dead-end streetAlong the dead-end street, if the house faces itSame limits; check the City map, as the district boundary is irregular

From the City of Galveston Design Standards for Historic Properties (fence standards, 3.7 parking, Chapter 5 Silk Stocking). A planning summary, not a permit decision.

New wood privacy fence with exposed rails along a narrow side yard beside a brick house
A wood privacy fence along a narrow side yard, from a Mustang job in Galveston.
Tall wood privacy fence with exposed rails running along a mown lawn
A privacy fence along a rear lawn, from a Mustang job in Galveston.
Black ornamental metal fence with spear-top pickets on a paved patio beside a brick house and pool
A spear-top metal fence at a patio and pool. Around a pool, up to 5 ft is on the staff-approval list.

From plan to permit in Silk Stocking

  1. Check deed restrictions. The City’s process starts there. It doesn’t enforce them, so ask whoever holds them.
  2. Certificate of Appropriateness. Take your plan to the City’s Historic Preservation Officer (Planning, 3015 Market Street, 409-797-3660). A fence that meets the administrative list can be approved by staff. Other fences, and any the HPO refers, go to a Landmark Commission hearing.
  3. Fence permit. Answer yes to the historic district question on the City’s fence permit, and attach photos of any existing fences on the site and the design of the new one.

From estimate to finished fence: a free on-site estimate (which way the house faces, the property line and right-of-way, corner and alley sides, existing fences and walls, trees), a design and drawing for the review, the approval and permit, then installation. What affects cost and timing: total length (the planner above gives you a first figure), height, material (painted picket, ornamental metal, or cedar with lattice), the number and width of gates, removing an old fence, and whether staff can approve it or it needs a hearing. Financing is available through the providers on our financing page, subject to credit approval. See a cedar fence and gate we built in Galveston.

What customers say on Google

5.0
91 Google reviews · read them all on Google
★★★★★
had an excellent experience with mustang fencing From the initial consultation to the final installation, the team was professional, punctual, and attentive to detail. They helped me choose the perfect fence style to match my property and ensured everything was installed with precision. The quality of materials is top-notch, and the fence has completely transformed the look and security of my home. I highly recommend mustang services to anyone looking for reliable and high-quality fencing services!
Abdul Wahab · Google review · a year ago
★★★★★
Mustang's team installed iron fence for me and did an absolutely incredible job! I would recommend this company to anyone I know!
Theodore Howitt · Google review · a year ago
★★★★★
Amazing work will go ahead and recommend everyone in friends and family We installed 8ft tall double sided stained cedar wood fence in our backyard, it's really looks great, installed perfectly nice finishing and cost effective, thanks mustang fencing.
Muqeet Mohammed Abdul · Google review · a year ago

Reviews shown word for word from the Mustang Fencing Services Google Business Profile (Galveston), captured 2026-09-27.

Questions we get about this

Do you install fences in the Silk Stocking Historic District?
Yes. We install painted wood picket and ornamental metal front fences, cedar and iron privacy fences at the side and rear, pool fences and gates, planned to the City’s Design Standards for Historic Properties.
Where is the Silk Stocking Historic District?
It is a City of Galveston local historic district created in 1975, with 25th Street (Rosenberg) as its core, covering all or part of nineteen blocks. The boundary is irregular, so check your address on the City’s district map.
Which side of my Silk Stocking lot counts as the front yard?
The side your house faces. The City notes that many Silk Stocking houses face the numbered north-south streets, so the front fence often runs along 24th, 25th or 26th Street rather than an avenue. On a corner lot, the other street is the corner side yard.
How tall can a front fence be in Silk Stocking?
48 inches for City staff approval, in painted wood picket or metal consistent with the style of the house. A taller front fence goes to the Landmark Commission. The City’s zoning limit is 4 feet for a solid front-yard fence, or 5 feet if it is at least 60% transparent.
Can I build a privacy fence in the back yard?
Yes. At a non-corner side or the rear, City staff can approve solid cedar up to 6 feet with 2 feet of framed wood lattice on top, or cast or wrought iron up to 8 feet. The approval chart in the same document lists 48 inches for the cedar privacy row, so confirm the height with the Historic Preservation Officer.
Can I use vinyl or chain link in Silk Stocking?
The design standards say not to install vinyl fencing, and they list chain link as inappropriate. They also say not to mix wood and metal fence styles.
My lot backs onto or sits beside 23rd Street (Tremont). Can I screen it?
The City lists commercial uses on 23rd Street, next to the district, as a concern for Silk Stocking. At a non-corner side or the rear you can use cedar with lattice or iron up to 8 feet. If Tremont is your corner side street, staff approval is limited to a 4-foot fence matching the front, and anything taller goes to the Landmark Commission.

Sources

Checked September 27, 2026. Rules change, so confirm with the City before you build.

  1. City of Galveston, The Silk Stocking Historic District — designation in 1975, 25th Street (Rosenberg) core, the name, early development, the Texas Cotton Press and the 1898 lot auction, and the Historic Preservation Officer contact.
  2. City of Galveston, A Property Owner’s Guide to Galveston’s Historic Districts — Silk Stocking includes all or a portion of nineteen blocks.
  3. City of Galveston, Design Standards for Historic Properties — the Silk Stocking section of Chapter 5 (design traditions, key features, concerns, Map 5.3), the fence standards 3.5–3.6 and the administrative-approval list, Chart 1.3, and parking 3.7.
  4. Hardy·Heck·Moore for the City of Galveston, Historic Resources Survey of the East End, Silk Stocking and Lost Bayou Historic Districts (2015) — the 186 resources recorded, Queen Anne houses, National Register listing in 1996, and house orientation.
  5. City of Galveston Fence Permit Application (Rev. 03/2023) — the historic district question and the photos and design it requires.
  6. City of Galveston Land Development Regulations — Sec. 2.501 residential fence heights.
Free on-site estimate

Planning a fence in Silk Stocking?

We’ll measure the lot, confirm which side your house faces, and plan the front fence, corner side, rear privacy and alley gate to the design standards. Free on-site estimates.

Call (346) 910-8641Request an estimate

Keep planning

AreaFences and gates across Galveston IslandAreaLost Bayou historic districtAreaEast End historic districtServiceOrnamental iron fencesServiceWrought iron gatesGuidePicket fence height and spacing
Page reviewed September 27, 2026 by Mustang Fencing Services, Galveston. Next review due March 2027.

PLAN YOUR FENCE OR GATE PROJECT WITH US TODAY

Planning a new fence, a driveway gate or an automated entry? Tell us about your property and we’ll set up a free on-site estimate. We work with homeowners, HOAs and businesses across Galveston Island and Galveston County.

Prefer to talk? Call (346) 910-8641.

WHAT OUR CLIENTS ARE SAYING

Mustang Fencing

WE PROUDLY SERVE GALVESTON ISLAND & GALVESTON COUNTY

  • Call us today

Areas we serve:

Galveston TX

Galveston Island

Jamaica Beach TX

Tiki Island TX

Bayou Vista TX

La Marque TX

Texas City TX

Hitchcock TX

Santa Fe TX

Dickinson TX

Bacliff TX

San Leon TX

Kemah TX

League City TX

Clear Lake Shores TX

OUR PARTNERS

Genie brand logo
LiftMaster brand logo

More Services

Fencing

Gates