Thomas Jefferson High School

Thomas Jefferson High School was constructed between 1930 and 1932 on the northwest side of San Antonio, Texas. It was designed by the architecture firm Adams & Adams in the Spanish Moorish style. The interior is elaborately decorated, with several areas of painted ornamental plaster, as well as thousands of decorative ceiling tiles. In 1983 Jefferson High was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and in 1995, it was included in the Local Historic District by the City of San Antonio.

Working alongside Rogers-O’Brien Construction, EverGreene replicated approximately 15,000 historic ceiling tiles throughout the school’s auditorium, library, and corridors. Replication was required to replace tiles that were damaged, deteriorated, or no longer structurally sound. EverGreene’s design studio precisely recreated each historic tile design and digitally printing the ceiling tiles with a hand-painted effect that closely matched the originals to ensure accuracy and visual continuity. To achieve precise installation, the tiles are reproduced using a grid-based system, with multiple tiles printed in pre-defined sections and installed in sequence to recreate the original patterns. This approach requires careful planning and close coordination with the project team and installation trades to ensure every tile aligned correctly and the historic design read seamlessly.

In addition to the ceiling tile replication, EverGreene restored the decorative finishes in the auditorium and school library. Friable paint was carefully readhered and consolidated to stabilize the historic surfaces, followed by dry cleaning. Where finishes had been lost, they were meticulously replicated to match the original appearance.