Casa de Estudillo

Casa de Estudillo is a Spanish Colonial adobe structure with twelve rooms arranged around a central courtyard in a U-shaped layout. An exterior corridor connects the spaces and allows passage along the outer walls of the entire property.

The residence was built between 1827 and 1829 by Jose Maria Estudillo and his son Jose Antonio as a showcase of family wealth and status. It remained the social center for the city's leading families throughout the Mexican period and into early American rule.

The home housed a prominent family that shaped the city's social life during the Mexican period. The private rooms reveal how wealthy Californians lived and conducted their daily affairs during this era.

Visitors can walk through furnished rooms that show how the family lived and worked in the 19th century. The central courtyard provides a shaded space to rest and understand the layout of the entire structure.

A raised balcony with small towers on the back of the house gave the family an elevated viewpoint over the plaza below. From this vantage point, they could watch bullfights, horse races, and public celebrations that shaped the city's rhythms.

Location: San Diego

Inception: 1827

Architects: Hazel Wood Waterman

Architectural style: Spanish Colonial architecture

Address: 4000 Mason Street

GPS coordinates: 32.75426,-117.19680

Latest update: December 7, 2025 20:50