| King William Historic District | |
| Nrhp Type: | hd |
| Nocat: | yes |
| Location: | San Antonio, Texas |
| Coordinates: | 29.4142°N -98.4928°W |
| Locmap Label: | King William Historic District' |
| Locmap Relief: | y. |
| Architect: | Multiple |
| Added: | January 20, 1972 |
| Refnum: | 72001349 |
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.[1] 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.[2] 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.[3] 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.[4] The area was home to the United States Arsenal beginning in 1859. In 1985, the H-E-Bu grocery chain acquired ten acres for their corporation headquarters.
| Image | Address | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| (1866) | 236 King William | Ernst Altgelt (1832–1878) Düsseldorf immigrant who built the first home on King William Street, which he named after King of Prussia William I, German Emperor. | [5] | ||
| (1878) | 226 King William | Second house build by Ernst Altgelt. RTHL 5029000134 | [6] [7] | ||
| 120 King William | Built by French immigrant brothers John and Jack Ball. | [8] | |||
| 116 King William | Built by French immigrant brothers John and Jack Ball. | ||||
| 222 E. Guenther | San Antonio architect Albert Beckmann also designed many of the city's commercial buildings. | [9] | |||
| 208 and 210 King William | Built 1882–83 by Swedish cotton-wool-hides merchant Louis Bergstrom | [10] | |||
| 528 King William | RTHL 5507018355 | [11] | |||
| Blersch-Watson House | 213 Washington | Built 1859 for Gustav Blersch | |||
| 112 King William | Built 1905 | ||||
| 326 King William | Built 1915 | ||||
| Elias and Lucy Edmonds House | 419 King William | RTHL 5507015407 | [12] [13] | ||
| Ellis-Meusebach House | 414 King William | Built 1884 | |||
| 525 Madison | Built 1890 | ||||
| 228 Washington | Texas-German Vernacular style | [14] | |||
| 306 King William | Both 306 and 308 built 1883 as "twin houses" for Alfred Giles, who was a British-born architect responsible for designing many courthouses, homes and buildings in Texas. | [15] | |||
| 308 King William | Both 306 and 208 built 1883 as "twin houses" for Alfred Giles. | ||||
| 506 Madison | Built 1909 for Confederate emissary Carl Griesenbeck | ||||
| 335 King William | RTHL 5029002287 | [16] | |||
| 231 Washington | Built 1875 | [17] | |||
| 205 E. Guenther Street | NRHP 2090001539, RTHL5029004808 | [18] [19] | |||
| H.E.B. Corporate Headquarters - United States Arsenal Site | [20] | ||||
| 523 King William | Built 1884 | ||||
| 225 King William | Built 1880 | ||||
| 317 King William | Built 1883–85 | ||||
| 309 King William | Built 1884 | ||||
| Johnson Street Pedestrian Bridge | [21] | ||||
| Joseph House (San Antonio) | |||||
| 241 King William | Built 1900 | [22] | |||
| 425 King William | Built 1892 | ||||
| 332 King William | Built 1907 | ||||
| 514 Madison | Built 1895 f | ||||
| King William Park and Bandstand | |||||
| McDaniel Carriage House | 130 King William | Built 1896/1972 for Dr. and Mrs. Alfred McDaniel | |||
| Mitchell-Ogg House | 202 Washington | Built 1857–1892 for Newton A. Mitchell and Louis Oge | |||
| 432 and 434 King William | Built 1900 for the builder of Nix Medical Center | ||||
| Norton-Polk-Mathis House | 401 King William | RTHL 5029003615 | [23] | ||
| 316 King William | Built 1900 | ||||
| 203 King William | Built 1891 | ||||
| 404 and 410 King William | Built 1878–1900 | ||||
| 242 King William | Built 1906-06 | ||||
| 217 King William | Built 1882 | ||||
| 221 E. Guenther | Built in 1892 | [24] | |||
| 303 King William | Built for San Antonio postmaster John J. Stevens. Later sold to Vinton Lee James | [25] | |||
| 504 King William | Designed by Alfred Giles | ||||
| 505 Madison | Converted from stable and carriage house to residence ca.1925 | ||||
| 509 King William | Edward Steves Sr. house | [26] | |||
| 431 King William | Built 1884 | ||||
| 219 E. Guenther | Built 1885 | ||||
| 422 King William | Built 1887 | [27] | |||
| 107 King William | Saved in 1974 by the San Antonio Conservation Society | [28] | |||
| Unknown | 325 King William | 1940s Art Moderne home currently on property |
52 properties (or 53 if Ball houses counted separately)