George discovered the buildings of the borderlands when he led the Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS) in Texas in 1961. Governed by strict specifications, HABS reports document historic structures in multiple ways: through photographs, measured drawings, and written descriptions, including historical research. Buildings surveyed must evidence historical or architectural significance and have sufficient historical documentation to be included in the project. The 1968 draft manual for the HABS project also stated that structures threatened with destruction or modification were to be considered high priorities. Although the most prominent of the buildings surveyed in 1961 was San Antonio de Valero (otherwise known as the Alamo), George included the Hill County courthouse in Hillsboro, Kimball Academy, Gethsemane Lutheran Church in Austin, and several historic buildings throughout the Rio Grande Valley. The 1961 HABS reports offer a glimpse of the diversity and richness of Texas’ architectural heritage.

George’s work on HABS in 1961 did more than document historic buildings; it also gave him a deep interest in the Rio Grande Valley, which sustained his research in this area for nearly half a century. In a 1972 letter concerning historic structures in the Rio Grande Valley, George noted that he had become enchanted with the historic town of Roma during his survey work there and “hoped that it [the HABS project] would help bring to view historic structures in the Rio Grande valley. Though these structures are regional in nature, they are significant and valuable to our national heritage.”

During George’s research on the historic brick and adobe buildings of Roma, he uncovered the existence of a nearly-forgotten local architect, deemed by George to be along with Father Peter Keralum, “one of the two most important architectural influences in the lower Rio Grande.” With the assistance of local historian Florence Scott, George tracked down archival documentation for the architect and interviewed his descendants in the area. His efforts ultimately provided a name and background for the mysterious mason: Heinrich Portscheller, an immigrant from Germany by way of Mexico. This information, along with George’s HABS photos, drawings, and reports, contributed to the area’s designation as a National Historic District in 1972, and it was the basis of a book titled, Master building of the Lower Rio Grande: Heinrich Portscheller published in 2016.