Located at 1115 Montana in Central El Paso, the Jacobo Blanco residence is a red brick two-story structure on a cut rock foundation, designed by one of El Paso's foremost architects, Samuel E. Patton. It includes Patton's signature curved wrap-around porch and decorated, peaky pediments, which he repeated in numerous homes he designed during his early tenure in the Sun City, most notably in the Sunset Heights area.
The home was commissioned by and built for the Mexican representative of the International Water Boundry Commission, Jacobo Blanco. Blanco had lived in El Paso for 7 years at the time this home was built, and after its October 1905 completion, it became somewhat of a social center for that area of town.
Unfortunately and tragically, in March 1906, Jacobo Blanco passed away after less than 6 months in his new home. According to the 03/12/1906 El Paso Daily Times, his death caused shock among the political community on both sides of the border, and his final journey in the hearse from El Paso to his native country was full of pomp and mourning, including a parade down Montana Ave.
In late 1906, the home was purchased by William C. Davis, who was President of the Davis Lumber Co., Independent Lumber Co., and the Davis Development Company. He also served as the Secretary/Treasurer of Pomeroy's El Paso Transfer Company. Davis and his family remained in the home until at least 1922.
Samuel E. Patton was one of El Paso's most creative architects, active from approximately 1903 or 04, when he came to our city from Phoenix, until around 1921. His most famous El Paso design was the St. Clement Church, a beautiful Gothic that stands as the centerpiece of the St. Clement campus today. He also designed the Mission Revival First Baptist Church, which still stands at the corner of Virginia and Myrtle. For a great jump-off point to look at some of his El Paso architecture, see https://www.facebook.com/TrostSociety/posts/3426178277500214 and https://www.facebook.com/TrostSociety/posts/3756633261121379. We recently featured the magnificent Queen Anne Herbert Mundy mansion, designed by Patton, at https://www.facebook.com/TrostSociety/posts/3880618115389559.
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Mark Stone, citing period newspaper articles and City Directory entries accessed at the UNT Digital Archives at https://texashistory.unt.edu/
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