One of the earliest known sites of occupation on the west end of Galveston Island, this ridge was at one time a campsite for the nomadic Karankawa Indians. The property was purchased in 1856 by Col. Warren D. c. Hall (1788-1867), veteran of several military expeditions and the Texas revolution. The estate was named "Mottexas" under the next owner, Galveston attorney Col. Marcus F. Mott (1837-1906). His home burned in 1925 and the land was then purchased by prominent businessman George Sealy, Jr. (1880-1944), who built a home here and named the site "Isla Ranch." Association of the property with the Stewart name began in 1933 when Maco Stewart, Sr. (1871-1938), a native Galvestonian and organizer of the Stewart Title Company, acquired the site. Maco Stewart, Jr. (1896-1950) received the estate in 1940 and made several changes to the house while operating a ranch on the acreage. In 1944 Stewart deeded the land to the University of Texas, which used the property in connection with its Galveston medical branch until 1967. The Stewart property has revealed much about the island's heritage through its association with individuals and families involved in the growth and development of Galveston.