What is now the King William Historic District was once farm land for the people attached to San Antonio's most famous mission, the Alamo. It's evolution involved the city's Spanish Governor, Indians, and other settlers. It is said that King William Street derived its name in honor of the Prussian ruler, Wilhelm I.

The area is a tapestry of influences: Native, European, Greek Revival, Victorian, Neoclassical and, simply, the times -1860's, 1920's and even later. The architecture reflected the eclectic personality.

In the early 1900s the King William District began to wane as a fashionable neighborhood and by 1920 many of the original family members were either dead or had moved to other parts of San Antonio. During the 1930s and 1940s the neighborhood declined further.

Around 1950, however, the interest in preservation of the area was aroused and once again it became a desirable place to live. Caring people gained possession and transformed it in a style respectful of its true value. The King William area experienced a renaissance and, in 1967 the King William District was designated the first Historic Neighborhood District in Texas.