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Norton–Polk–Mathis House

Historic district contributing properties in TexasHistoric house museums in TexasHouses in San AntonioHouses on the National Register of Historic Places in TexasItalianate architecture in Texas
Museums in San AntonioNational Register of Historic Places in San AntonioNational Trust for Historic PreservationRecorded Texas Historic LandmarksTexas Registered Historic Place stubsTexas museum stubsVillas in the United States
Norton polk mathis house 2014
Norton polk mathis house 2014

The Norton–Polk–Mathis House, also known Villa Finale, is a historic house in San Antonio, Texas, United States. Local merchant Russel C. Norton began construction on the house in 1876. The house was designated a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 1971.It is a contributing property to the King William Historic District, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is also a National Trust Historic Site, the only one in Texas.The house was remodeled with additions of a second story, rear gallery, and Italian Renaissance Revival Tower. Other owners included rancher Edwin Polk and cattleman Ike T. Pryor. The house was then turned into a boarding house until 1967, when it was purchased by local civic leader Walter Nold Mathis. Mathis spent two years restoring the house and named it Villa Finale as he planned on it being his last home. He then purchased fourteen other homes in the King William neighborhood, restored them and sold them to others whom he hoped would continue to preserve them. The home was donated to the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 2004 which operates it as a museum.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Norton–Polk–Mathis House (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Norton–Polk–Mathis House
River Walk, San Antonio

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Latitude Longitude
N 29.413888888889 ° E -98.494166666667 °
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Address

Villa Finale

River Walk
78205 San Antonio
Texas, United States
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Norton polk mathis house 2014
Norton polk mathis house 2014
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King William Historic District

The King William Historic District of San Antonio, Texas was listed on the National Register of Historic Places listings in Bexar County, Texas on January 20, 1972. The area was originally used as farm acreage by the Spanish priests of the Misión San Antonio de Valero, and eventually parceled off for the local indigenous peoples of the area. In addition to residential homes, the district also includes the King William Park and Bandstand originally built in 1892 on the arsenal grounds, and later moved to its current location. Other features are the Upper Mill Park, the King William River Walk, and the Johnson Street pedestrian bridge.The subdividing of the area into residential lots dates to 1853–66, coincided with the German diaspora in Texas. San Antonio by then was experiencing an influx of German immigrants, fueled in part by the German Adelsverein colonization efforts of the mid-19th century. Wilhelm Thielepape was one of those colonists, and served as Mayor of San Antonio 1867–1872. Surveyor Ernst Hermann Altgelt relocated to San Antonio in 1866, and built the first home in the area now known as the King William District. Being the first home builder in the area, he named it after King of Prussia William I, German Emperor. What eventually became a German enclave of the King William Historic District continued into the next generations. The 419 King William house was built in 1884 by Smith Ellis, but eventually sold to Otto Meusebach, the son of John O. Meusebach who led the Adelsverein colonization and founded the German town of Fredericksburg, Texas.The King William Historic District evolved into more of an area for the financially successful, rather than any particular ethnicity. Louis Bergstrom was a successful businessman from Sweden. Several of the homes were designed by British architect Alfred Giles: the Carl Wilhelm August Groos House, the Edward Steves Homestead; Sartor House for jeweler Alexander Sartor Jr. Giles designed the Oge House for business leader and former Texas Ranger Louis Oge. The area was home to the United States Arsenal beginning in 1859. In 1985, the H-E-Butt grocery chain acquired ten acres for their corporation headquarters.

Grass Fight

The Grass Fight was a small battle during the Texas Revolution, fought between the Mexican Army and the Texian Army. The battle took place on November 26, 1835, just south of San Antonio de Béxar in the Mexican region of Texas. The Texas Revolution had officially begun on October 2 and by the end of the month the Texians had initiated a siege of Béxar, home of the largest Mexican garrison in the province. Bored with the inactivity, many of the Texian soldiers returned home; a smaller number of adventurers from the United States arrived to replace them. After the Texian Army rejected commander-in-chief Stephen F. Austin's call to launch an assault on Béxar on November 22, Austin resigned from the army. The men elected Edward Burleson their new commander-in-chief. On November 26, Texian scout Deaf Smith brought news of a Mexican pack train, accompanied by 50–100 soldiers, that was on its way to Bexar. The Texian camp was convinced that the pack train carried silver to pay the Mexican garrison and purchase supplies. Burleson ordered Colonel James Bowie to take 45–50 cavalry and intercept the train. An additional 100 infantry followed. On seeing the battle commence, Mexican General Martín Perfecto de Cos sent reinforcements from Bexar. The Texans repulsed several attacks by Mexican soldiers, who finally retreated to Bexar. When the Texians examined the abandoned pack train they discovered that, instead of silver, the mules carried freshly cut grass to feed the Mexican Army horses. Four Texians were injured, and historian Alwyn Barr states that three Mexican soldiers were killed, although Bowie and Burleson initially claimed the number was much higher.