Tucson - American Southwest - page 384

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Architectural Highlights

Tucson has a long and varied cultural history, which is most easily seen by
strolling through the downtown historic neighborhoods. Start your explora-
tions in El Presidio Historic District, which is named for the Presidio of San
Augustín del Tucson (1775), the Spanish garrison built here to protect the San
Xavier del Bac Mission from the Apaches. For many years the presidio was
the heart of Tucson, and although no original buildings are still standing,
there are numerous structures from the mid-19th century. Some of my favor-
ites are listed below.
• La Casa Cordova, at 175 N. Meyer Ave., dates from about 1848 and is one
of the oldest buildings in Tucson. It's been restored to look as it might have
in the late 1800s. Each year from November to March, this building exhib-
its a very elaborate nacimiento, a Mexican folk-art nativity scene.
• Corbett House, a restored Mission Revival-style building located at 180 N.
Main Ave., was built in 1907. The house, which is set back behind a green
lawn, is strikingly different from the older, Sonoran-style adobe homes on
this block. The Tucson Museum of Art offers guided tours of this house.
• Fish House, at 120 N. Main Ave., was built in 1867 on the site of old
Mexican barracks. Named for Edward Nye Fish, a local merchant, it now
houses the art museum's Western-art collection.
• Julius Kruttschnidt House, at 297 N. Main Ave., dates from 1886 and now
houses a bed-and-breakfast inn. Victorian trappings, including a long
veranda, disguise the adobe origins of this unique and beautifully restored
home.
• Steinfeld House, at 300 N. Main Ave., was built in 1900 in California Mission
Revival style and was designed by Henry Trost, Tucson's most noted archi-
tect. It served as the original Owl's Club, a gentlemen's club for some of
Tucson's most eligible turn-of-the-20th-century bachelors.
• Owl's Club Mansion, at 378 N. Main Ave., was built in 1902 and designed
by Henry Trost in the Mission Revival style, albeit with a great deal of
ornamentation. It replaced the Steinfeld House as home to the bachelors
of the Owl's Club.
• Built in 1928, the Pima County Courthouse, located at 115 N. Church Ave.,
incorporates Moorish, Spanish, and Southwestern architectural features,
including a colorful tiled dome.
• Sosa-Carillo-Frémont House, located at 151 S. Granada Ave., on the
grounds of the Tucson Convention Center, was built in the 1850s and later
served as the home of territorial governor John C. Frémont.
• The Barrio Histórico District is another worthwhile area to explore, espe-
cially the northern (and more restored) section. With 150 adobe row houses,
this neighborhood contains the largest collection of 19th-century Sonoran-
style adobe buildings in the United States.

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