This is a beautiful Mission Revival/Spanish eclectic blend in the Snob Row area of Tucson, located at 162 North Main Street close to downtown Tucson. The home is just down the street from three iconic Henry C. Trost structures (First and Second Owls Club buildings, to name a pair) and is currently owned and maintained by the Tucson Museum of Art (see https://www.tucsonmuseumofart.org/j-knox-corbett-house/).
The home was built in 1907 for Johnson Knox Corbett (1861-1934), a future two-term Mayor of Tucson. Corbett, a former Postmaster in Tucson, became wealthy through the cattle trade, owning a Rincon Valley ranch - and then operated the Tucson Valley's most successful lumber business during the City's boom years. He became Mayor in 1915 and served two single-year terms.
The home was designed by prolific Tucson architect David Hull Holmes of the firm of Holmes & Holmes, which had been formed only a couple of years before the erection of the Corbett. An influential architect in both Boulder, Colorado and in the Tucson valley, D. Holmes resigned his position as a professor at the University of Arizona in 1905 and formed the Architectural partnership with his brother Jesse "Jack" Holmes.
The home, typical of other David Holmes properties, is very understated and free of decorations. It is a brick stuccoed Spanish Revival with a hipped Spanish Tiled roof, fronted with two wonderful Mission style parapets. It is a very clean-looking gorgeous design. It is very reminiscent of the Trost & Rust Steinfeld Mansion (aka First Owls Club) a block to the north, sans the finial decorations. The house remained in the Corbett family for decades, until signed over to the City of Tucson in the late 1960s to eaarly 1970s. The City restored the building in 1995. Today, it is in excellent condition.
I was blessed to take fresh pictures of the house on 10/22/2020, and it posed with grace and dignity. In "Snob Row" indeed, but not snobby at all.
***************
Note: Both the Trost Society, in its Interactive Map (see https://trostsociety.org/buildings/william-j-corbett-residence/) and the Henry C. Trost Historical Organization (see https://www.henrytrost.org/buildings/corbett-residence/) attribute this building to architect Henry C. Trost. This belief is based on an advertisement placed in the 11/14/1914 edition of the Arizona Republic by Trost & Trost where they list the W.J. Corbett residence as one of their commissions. This ad, however, refers to a different home designed for William J. Corbett, who happened to be J. Knox Corbett's brother. The Tucson Historic Preservation Organization is in possession of the 1905 water-color drawings, created by architects Holmes & Holmes, that identify this house as their design. All of this documentation is reproduced below.
***************
Text, research and modern photography provided to Sketchclub.net by Mark Stone, citing:
-- The Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation, "David Hull Holmes 1874-1967", staff writer(s), https://preservetucson.org/stories/holmes-holmes/
-- Tucson Museum of Art, "The J. Knox Corbett House", Staff Writer(s), https://www.tucsonmuseumofart.org/j-knox-corbett-house/
-- Arizona Historical Society, MS-0174, "Corbett Family Papers, 1875-1963", staff writer(s), http://www.arizonahistoricalsociety.org/wp-content/upLoads/library_Corbett-Family.pdf
-- Wikipedia, "Johnston Knox Corbett", staff & contributers, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnston_Knox_Corbett
-- Newspapers dot Com, Arizona Republic 11/08/1914 page 50 at https://www.newspapers.com/image/118867431/?terms=Trost%2B%26%2BTrost
 |
| Photograph taken by Mark Stone 10/22/2020 |
 |
| Photograph taken by Mark Stone 10/22/2020 |
 |
| Photograph taken by Mark Stone 10/22/2020 |
 |
| Photograph taken by Mark Stone 10/22/2020 |
 |
| Photograph taken by Mark Stone 10/22/2020 |
 |
| Photograph taken by Mark Stone 10/22/2020 |
 |
| Newspapers dot Com, Arizona Republic 11/08/1914 page 50 at https://www.newspapers.com/image/118867431/?terms=Trost%2B%26%2BTrost |
 |
| Photograph taken by Mark Stone 10/22/2020 |
 |
| Photograph taken by Mark Stone 10/22/2020 |
 |
| Photograph taken by Mark Stone 10/22/2020 |
 |
| The Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation, "David Hull Holmes 1874-1967", staff writer(s), https://preservetucson.org/stories/holmes-holmes/. Documentation that the home was designed by Holmes and Holmes. |
 |
| The Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation, "David Hull Holmes 1874-1967", staff writer(s), https://preservetucson.org/stories/holmes-holmes/. Documentation that the home was designed by Holmes and Holmes. |
 |
| The Tucson Historic Preservation Foundation, "David Hull Holmes 1874-1967", staff writer(s), https://preservetucson.org/stories/holmes-holmes/. Documentation that the home was designed by Holmes and Holmes. |
 |
| Photograph taken by Mark Stone 10/22/2020 |
