Casa Navarro State Historic Site

Brooks Martin, an architect with the San Antonio chapter of the American Institute of Architects, began restoration of the property in 1962. Work at an estimated cost of $54,000 concluded in 1964. The San Antonio Conservation Society fundraised to cover the costs of this initial restoration. The walls of the main house were constructed with a combination of blocks of adobe and native limestone, 14- to 16-inches thick, covered with plaster or stucco. According to Martin, all exterior walls of the Navarro House were covered with stucco, except for the north wall with its exposed rubble limestone. It is thought that the house first consisted of only the front two rooms facing Laredo Street, and later, a portion of the back porch was enclosed to create two smaller rooms. The original front rooms each have built-in cupboards. Martin posed that these cupboards had been windows overlooking the back porch and courtyard before the room additions were constructed and the windows converted to storage. Finally, a larger room was built along the north wall of the building, making the main house a five-room, L-shaped structure.