Villa Mira Monte
National Register of Historic Places

Villa Mira Monte

Morgan Hill, Santa Clara County, California
Listed
May 24, 1978
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
78000777

About this property

Villa Mira Monte is a historic villa in Morgan Hill, California, United States, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was built for Hiram Morgan Hill, founder of Morgan Hill, and his wife Diana Helen Murphy Hill, a Californio heiress. The Hiram Morgan Hill house was built in 1886 for Morgan Hill and his wife, Diana Helen Murphy (the daughter of Daniel Martin Murphy). The site also includes the Morgan Hill Museum, a farmhouse built in 1911 by John Acton. Hill was from Missouri; his wife Diana was an heiress. The house was built on land inherited by Diana from her father, Daniel Murphy. Her Irish-born grandfather had emigrated to Canada penniless and acquired land grants in Alta California when it was a federal territory of the First Mexican Republic. With the Hill couple separated, Hiram became a cattle rancher in Nevada, and Diana became a socialite in Washington, D.C. Their daughter, also named Diana, married Baron Hardouin Reinhach-Werth in 1911 and died by suicide in 1912. The father died in 1913. The mother emigrated to England and married Sir George Rhodes. She became known as Lady Diana Helen Murphy Hill Rhodes, and she died in Cannes in 1937. She was buried in the Santa Clara Cemetery with the rest of her family. The house was designed in the Stick-Eastlake architectural style. It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since May 25, 1978.

Location

17860 Monterey Rd.
Morgan Hill, Santa Clara County, California
37.13449, -121.65727

Categories

EXPLORATION/SETTLEMENTARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Malaguerra Winery
Industrial
2.4 mi
Rhoades Ranch
Listed
2.5 mi
Norris, Frank, Cabin
Industrial
6.8 mi
Highway 152 Tree Row
Listed
8.9 mi
New Almaden
Listed
9.4 mi

Questions about this property

When was Villa Mira Monte listed on the National Register?

Villa Mira Monte was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 24, 1978.

What type of historic resource is Villa Mira Monte?

Villa Mira Monte is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Villa Mira Monte?

The period of significance for Villa Mira Monte is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Villa Mira Monte?

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