6 Outstanding Houses to See in Old Town San Diego

Delia Tugui | May 30, 2016

6. The Robinson-Rose House

In 1850, James W. Robinson (soon to be involved in almost every aspect of San Diego’s development and become a respected law practice, promoter, investor and school board trustee) arrived here together with his wife (both coming from Texas) and built this awe-inspiring house that served as a law office and family residence. A very interesting and odd fact is that the building’s first floor was made of adobe and painted to look like wood siding, while the second floor was wood framed and painted to look like adobe.

Over the years, the Robinson-Rose House served as a jail cell (on the second floor), medical and law offices, newspaper office, schoolroom, the County Clerk’s office, store and residential apartments.

The original structure was, unfortunately demolished sometime around 1900 and the existing replica serves nowadays as the park’s tourist information center, featuring a diorama of Old Town San Diego (built by Joseph Toigo), displaying how it would likely been in the 1872.

Not only will Robinson-Rose House give you a great glimpse of the past aesthetics of the area, but you will actually be able to learn about how the people lived their daily lives, what the elite was up to, and how can an apparently simple (yet gorgeous) building play so many roles within a pretty short period of time.

Feeling astonished and a bit overwhelmed? So did I! It’s time for you to take a break and enjoy some Mexican traditional treats – there’s a wide variety to choose from and nothing I’ve tried so far was less than absolutely delicious. Enjoy!

Bernard Gagnon / Own Work

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