San Antonio has changed a lot over the years, and that includes some landmarks like statues and signs being lost, removed or relocated.
File photos
San Antonio has changed a lot over the years, and that includes some landmarks like statues and signs being lost, removed or relocated. MySA asked locals to tell us which ones they remember from the city’s past — and if you grew up here, they may ring a bell.
Joske’s Santa disappeared from downtown San Antonio
Atop the Joske’s department store in downtown San Antonio (now part of the Shops at Rivercenter), a 30-foot Santa Claus statue used to ring in the holiday season. Inside the store, a 16,000-square-foot maze featuring a model train ride through a Christmas village was a staple for children in the early ’60s. However, Joske’s was sold to Dillard’s in 1987 after about a century in business and the holiday magic stopped. The train now resides at the New Braunfels Railroad Museum, although the jolly man in red has been lost to time.
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The Alamo National Bank building predicted San Antonio weather
Like most urban renewal projects, HemisFair involved a years-long process even after the site had been selected. From 1963 through 1966, the Urban Renewal Agency worked to relocate occupants and complete land purchases before site clearance and construction could start. Here construction crews work in the pit dug for the foundation of the new Convention Center. The Smith-Young Tower (left) and Alamo National Bank Building (center) can be seen in the background.
Orville Thompson /Courtesy San Antonio Conservation Society Foundation
Another nostalgic downtown sight was the sign atop the Alamo National Bank Building, which would signal to locals what weather conditions were like. When the weather was clear, no matter the temperature, the sign would have a steady light. A flashing light meant rain or even snow (on those rare occasions). The 24-story building was originally erected in 1929 and was one of the city’s tallest office spaces. But for the past 21 years, it hasn’t gone by its original name (or its original purpose, for that matter). Since 2005, the building has been home to the Drury Plaza Hotel San Antonio River Walk, added to the National Register of Historic Places the following year.
An iconic seafood restaurant’s sailor mascot is temporarily absent
Jolly Jack, the 10-foot mascot of Sea Island Shrimp House, was removed from the property to undergo repairs and restoration.
Sea Island Shrimp House
One commenter remembered the statue of a pirate that stood outside the original Rector Drive location of Sea Island Shrimp House since it opened in 1965. Jolly Jack had been a fixture of the area surrounding North Star Mall for decades, even making it into countless family photos. But last year, the statue disappeared.
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Well, this one’s absence isn’t permanent. Sea Island took Jolly Jack down from the helm for restorations in June 2025, including concrete and fiberglass reinforcements and adding fins back to the fish the statue holds. However, it seems that the repairs — which were originally slated to take eight weeks — are moving slower than expected, as the statue does not appear to have returned to the ship just yet. MySA last checked in with Sea Island in January, and a spokesperson said, “Jack has been a little more challenging than we had anticipated, but things are moving along.” The spokesperson said an update would come after the new year, but it’s still unclear when Jolly Jack will set sail again.
‘Hideous’ downtown statue of labor leader removed
Land where the Samuel Gompers statue exists near the River Walk may be a site where the Cenotaph could be relocated according to General Land Office spokesman Bryan Preston. The new battle of the Alamo is being fought on the airwaves and via social media, with websites and resolutions, through protests and news conferences. As demonstrators carry signs saying, “Save the Alamo,” Land Commissioner George P. Bush is running campaign ads that say he’s trying to do just that. After a vision of glass walls around the historic site shattered amidst protests, a proposal to move the Cenotaph is the latest rallying point for critics who say they’ll work to oust Bush over the changes in the May 6 GOP primary. And they say San Antonio Mayor Ron Nirenberg also will face a political backlash. (Kin Man Hui/San Antonio Express-News)
Kin Man Hui, Staff / San Antonio Express-News
One commenter wrote, “Back in the 1980s, there was a hideous statue of labor leader Samuel Gompers near the convention center. It was made of red clay or clay-like material. Facial features ill-defined. Not bronze. Not granite. Just ugly.” Indeed, the statue was unveiled along Market Street on Labor Day 1982 and was immediately met with mixed reactions. As the Express-News reported on its 43rd anniversary, “Some critics called the statue ‘hideous,’ and others pointed out its odd dimensions, including a ‘much larger head than a body would normally have,’ according to newspaper archives.”
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After decades of exposure to the elements, it was removed and placed in storage in 2019, later replaced by Labor Plaza in 2022.
Kallison’s cowboy has yet to return to downtown San Antonio
The Kallison’s cowboy has been missing from the top of the South Flores Street building for years.
Courtesy of Google Maps
Russian Jewish immigrant Nick Kallison arrived in San Antonio in 1899, and the family soon rose to prominence among ranchers and South Texas farmers. For decades on the roof of Kallison’s Western Wear on South Flores Street, an iconic cowboy statue stood as a symbol of the west. The store closed in 2000, but the statue remained there until it was taken down for restoration. However, according to a January 2026 Google Maps image, the building is still without its iconic cowboy and seems to have had its windows covered with plywood and its awning removed. Still, the Kallison’s name is still emblazoned on the brick facade.
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Other statues and monuments were relocated when the San Antonio community reevaluated their historical context. One mentioned by a commenter under MySA’s post was the monument to a Confederate soldier, which stood in Travis Park from 1899 to 2017. It was removed on the heels of a riot in Charlottesville, Virginia, and was placed in storage for eight years until the city donated it to a Seguin veterans ranch last year. Another statue that came down in San Antonio is The Chief, the depiction of a Native American that towered over the McCombs Superior Hyundai dealership on Loop 410 for decades. Many deemed it cultural appropriation of Native American tribes, and it was removed in 2023 — but since 2024, “Big Chief” has stood near the Jourdanton High School football stadium as an homage to the team’s mascot.