A descendant of the 18th Century Rio Grande settler Blas de la Garza Falcon, Tomas Tijerina (1860-1932) moved to this site in 1904. His original frame house was moved to the back of the lot in 1912 when the present brick home was built. Tijerina, a deputy sheriff for many years, designed the residence and his neighbor Teodoro Perez served as general carpenter. The exterior brick walls are supported by brick buttresses for protection from hurricane winds.