Manhattan Heights Historic District
Also known as: Memorial Park
Why it's listed
Manhattan Heights is a hillside residential neighborhood in El Paso, Texas, laid out in 1912 on the site of a former metal smelting plant at the base of Mt. Franklin. Slag mounds from the smelter altered the street grid near Memorial Park, a 43-acre city park that serves as a green oasis in an arid setting. The district holds roughly 600 houses, mostly bungalows alongside Spanish Colonial Revival, Georgian Revival and Prairie Style homes. The first house, built in 1914 at 3037 Federal Avenue, was designed by Otto Thorman. Other designers include Trost and Trost, Mabel Welch, the city's first female architect, and William G. Wuehrmann. Three churches, three apartment buildings, a school, a service station and a telephone building add variety. Most of the 612 structures predate 1930, and later buildings largely follow earlier styles. Well-kept lawns, mature trees and few harmful alterations give the area a cohesiveness that other older El Paso neighborhoods lack.
Significance in brief: The district holds nearly 600 houses that show early 20th century styles, mainly bungalows, Spanish Colonial Revival and Georgian Revival homes, and some Prairie Style influenced homes. Several were designed by locally prominent architects including Trost and Trost, Otto Thorman, Mabel Welch and William G. Wuehrmann. Its landscaping, Memorial Park and cohesive, well-maintained streets set it apart from other older El Paso neighborhoods. The form rates its significance as local.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 80004107, listed September 27, 1980. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | Roughly bounded by Grant, Louisiana and Richmond Aves., El Paso |
|---|---|
| County | El Paso County |
| Listed | September 27, 1980 |
| Reference number | 80004107 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architect / builder | Trost and Trost; Otto Thorman; Mabel C. Welch; William G. Wuehrmann |
| Architectural style | Bungalow, Spanish Colonial Revival, Georgian Revival, Prairie Style, and other early 20th century revival styles |
| Areas of significance | Community Planning and Development, Landscape Architecture, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition is marked excellent to fair, with the district described as occupied. Few of the houses have irreversible alterations, and the park's early 1930s formal gardens are being partially revived. |
| Acreage | 191 |
| Coordinates | 31.78790, -106.46083 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 80004107.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q107322569
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.