SoCal Landmarks

SoCal Landmarks

A Photography Project

Villa Montezuma, San Diego, San Diego County

Villa Montezuma

The Villa Montezuma, located in the Sherman Heights Historic District of downtown San Diego, defies exact architectural classification, combining elements, forms and detail of Moorish or Turkish and Gothic Influence in the general Queen Anne style. It was built in 1887 as the home of world famous pianist, author and spiritualist Jesse Shepard. Shepard used the pen name Francis Grierson, so it is known as both the Jesse Shepard House and the Francis Grierson House. The National Register documentation states that the architects were Comstock and Trötsche, but it is suggested that Shepard was involved in the design process. The house is owned by the City of San Diego and has been open to the public as a museum since November, 1972. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

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San Diego, San Diego County
Photographer: John Bare