{"nrhp_refnum":"71000183","name":"Villa Montezuma","other_names":["Shepard, Jesse, House"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1925 K St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"San Diego","county":"San Diego County","state":"CA","lat":32.708306890000074,"lon":-117.14643300999995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1971-05-06","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Art","Entertainment/Recreation","Literature","Architecture","Philosophy"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Villa Montezuma is a two-story wood-frame Victorian residence with a basement at 1925 K Street in San Diego, California, completed in 1887 for the musician and mystic Jesse Shepard.","why_significant":"The nomination presents the house as an architecturally unusual blend of Moorish or Turkish and Gothic influences within the Queen Anne style. It also stresses its preserved interior of redwood, stained glass and Lincrusta Walton, and its link to Jesse Shepard, a world-traveling pianist, singer and writer. Areas of significance checked include architecture, art, literature, music and religion/philosophy.","narrative":"Completed in 1887 at 1925 K Street in San Diego, Villa Montezuma was built as the home of Jesse Shepard, a pianist and singer who performed in Paris and St. Petersburg and later wrote as Francis Grierson. The two-story wood-frame house with a basement defies simple classification, combining Moorish or Turkish and Gothic details within the Queen Anne style. Its architects were Comstock and Trotsche, and John Mallon of San Francisco made the stained glass. Outside, patterned shingles, ornamental metalwork, cast metal gargoyles and a tower with a Saracenic dome stand out. Inside, polished redwood ceilings, paneling and doors, Lincrusta Walton wall coverings, stained glass windows and fireplaces with exotic hardwood mantles remain largely in their original condition. A dumbwaiter still works. The property was recognized for its architecture and for its associations with music, art, literature and philosophy through Shepard's career.","period_of_significance":"19th Century (construction completed 1887)","architect_builder":"Comstock and Trotsche (N. A. Comstock and Carl Trotsche); stained glass by John Mallon of San Francisco","architectural_style":"Queen Anne with Moorish/Turkish and Gothic influences","criteria":[],"status_note":"Described as in good condition and largely unaltered on its original site; preservation work was in progress by the City of San Diego. It was occupied as a private residence at the time of nomination.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:31.804426-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_CA/71000183.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/71000183/0a0eb6b7e8-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/71000183/0a0eb6b7e8-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"H. G. Hanekamp","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Villa_Montezuma_(San_Diego,_CA).jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">H. G. Hanekamp</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Villa_Montezuma_(San_Diego,_CA).jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/123861019","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villa_Montezuma","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q35757299"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/california/san-diego-county/villa-montezuma-71000183/"}