Tax Credit Program Highlight: Jesus Treviño-Blas Maria Uribe Rancho

History

The Jesus Treviño Maria Uribe Rancho represents the early Spanish colonial/Mexican settlement and ranching traditions in the southwest United States. The complex is best understood in the context of Spanish/Mexican colonial efforts north of the Rio Grande; settlers faced harsh living conditions with limited building materials, infrequent support from the main empire, and attacks from the local Native American population. The Rancho’s architecture reflects this harsh environment with high, thick sandstone walls, windowless facades, gun ports, and secured gated entry. Despite it’s fort-like appearance, the complex primarily served as the headquarters of a large ranching operation owned and worked by successive generations of the Treviño and Uribe families.

Rehabilitation Project

The Rancho is now owned by a non-profit foundation that owns multiple historic properties in San Ygnacio, and has been carefully restored over a number of years. Work has included stabilization and reconstruction of stone walls and fireplaces, which feature niches for storage and gun ports along one exterior wall of the complex. Walls that were historically plastered were re-plastered using appropriate lime-based stucco to match the materials of the original construction period. Plastered walls and the finish and use of wood in some rooms indicate whether the room served a formal or utilitarian purpose. Wood with decorative finishes was conserved and restored by an architectural conservator.