Villa Finale Visitor Center

In 1876, merchant Russel C. Norton built a one-story, four room single family residence on what had been Alamo farmlands during San Antonio’s Spanish period. At that time, the surrounding King William neighborhood was a desirable location for the city’s largely wealthy German families. However, a devastating flood in 1921 changed the neighborhood’s fortunes as the old German families, which had already begun moving away at the beginning of the 20th century, chose homes further away from downtown and the San Antonio River. Through it all, the old Norton house went through a variety of owners reflecting the changes happening throughout the city and region. By 1967, the house was being used as a subdivided boarding home, a fate shared by many of the once opulent homes in the neighborhood. The home’s fortunes changed when local civic leader and collector, Walter Nold Mathis, purchased it in 1967 after his own dwelling in a nearby historic neighborhood was scheduled to be razed for a highway project.

From their website, seen 7 October 2026 · Read more on their website

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