Spanish Governor's Palace
105 Military Plaza, San Antonio, TXThe Spanish Governor's Palace in San Antonio is an excellent and well-restored example of a large Spanish colonial town-house. It is also the only remaining example in Texas of an aristocratic eighteenth century Spanish residence. The exact date of erection of the building is not known, although the keystone over the main door bears the arms of the Hapsburgs and the date 1749. The building is known to have been used as the comandancia, the headquarters and residence of the captain of the presidio of San Antonio de Bexar which had been built for the protection of the Mission San Antonio de Valero (the Alamo), and who was the ranking representative of the King of Spain in the absence of the Governor. The name "Spanish Governor's Palace" is traditional. Two families in turn had private ownership of the building for 165 years; among them were governors, acting governors, captains of the garrison, and civil alcaldes. The property came into the possession of Luis Antonio Menchaca, captain of the presidio, in 1763, and remained in the possession of his family until 1803. In 1804 the house was purchased by Ignacio Perez, whose heirs retained the title until the City of San Antonio bought it for $55,000 in 1928. In the 1860s the house was used as a school house.Later is housed a second hand clothing store, a restaurant, and a bar. By the time the city has acquired it for the purpose of restoration, the building had been considerably altered. The house was restored in 1929-30 under the direction of Harvey P. Smith, architect. Now open to visitors as a museum, the Spanish Governor's Palace is furnished with Spanish Colonial period pieces.
Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1964.
Bibliography
Trent E. Sanford.The Architecture of the Old Southwest(N.Y., '50)
Hugh Morrison. Early American Architecture (New York,1952)
James G. VanDerPool."Historical Development of Architecture in the U.S.A.,1632-1912"(N.P.S.Typescript,1966)
Arnold Nicholson.American Houses in History.(New York,1965)
Dorothy K. Bracken and Maurine W. Redway. Early Texas Homes. (Dallas,1956)
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1970.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.