This is a house with a checkered history. From day one, most of those who held the deed to Villa Finale seemed to battle bankruptcy and foreclosure. It is surprising that this beautiful Italianate mansion was ever built.
I should say it wasn’t always as magnificent as it is today. The first rendition of the house that sits at 401 King William, had only four rooms. Still, even back in 1876 the neighborhood, with its concentration of mostly German residents, was home to several wealthy residents, even then.
The 6,057 square foot Texas limestone home became the home of Walter Nold Mathis in 1967. That’s when his original estate in Monte Vista was being leveled to make way for the new North Freeway, or Hwy. 281. Mathis’ friend, renowned architect O’Neil Ford, turned him on to the potential of the building.
It’s safe to say at the time it was in pretty miserable condition. Years before it had suffered the fate of several of these huge historic homes. It had been sectioned off into eight rundown apartments, and the backyard had been converted into a gravel parking lot.
From its comparatively modest beginnings as a four-room home, through years of additions, misadventures with foreclosures, and makeshift conversions the Italianate Victorian mansion had maintained a certain architectural grandeur, an historic charm. It certainly had a colorful past. According to Villa Finale historians, the home once belonged to a pimp, who past it along to his wife after he was killed in a poker game. She was a known madam who had a speakeasy and sold bootlegged liquor from the basement.
It took two years to complete the transformation back into a single-family home. In that time, Mathis developed what would be a life-long passion for historic preservation. His dedication helped to establish the King William neighborhood as the state’s first historic residential district in 1968.
Mathis had caught the bug. Through the years he ended up purchasing 12 more homes in King William. His aim was to ensure the houses would be put into the hands of those who would cherish them as much as he did.
NEW BEGINNINGS FOR FINALE
Mathis donated Villa Finale and its contents ( his extensive collection of 12,000 items includes dozens of fascinating Napoleonic pieces) to the National Trust for Historic Preservation in 2004. According to the King William Association, it is the first Trust-owned property in Texas.
Investigate what inspired Mathis to create such an endowment. The Villa Finale Visitor Center at the corner of Madison and Turner is open to the public. Go in and get a sampling of his 12,000-piece collection…and get a load of the awesome Violano Virtuoso. It is a combination player violin/player piano. I understand there are fewer than 100 in the country. At the center you can pick up a “King William Area – A Walking Tour”. The pamphlet is a numbered guide that will take you through the amazing variety of homes in the neighborhood. You will find Mathis’ Villa Finale is just four shady blocks away. Right now it is undergoing extensive restoration. It should open its doors to tours in October.
In the time being, view the images here to see what the interior looks like now. The architectural features are splendid indoors and out. Soon you will be able to walk through the home and imagine what Mathis must have experienced every day. He appreciated all that the home ever was, then he filled it with his cherished collection and guaranteed it will always be accessible to those who share his passion for preservation and the arts.
To download a volunteer application go to the Villa Finale website. You can also find out about cell phone audio tours of the area, and learn more about National Trust Historic Preservation. Their "Watching Paint Dry" blog keeps you posted on the restoration process. Also, look out for workshops and special events to be held at the Visitor Center throughout the year.
