Rancho Joaquina House (also known as J.E. Thompson House) is a

Mission Revival The Mission Revival style was part of an architectural movement, beginning in the late 19th century, for the revival and reinterpretation of American colonial styles. Mission Revival drew inspiration from the late 18th and early 19th century ...

Spanish Colonial Revival The Spanish Colonial Revival Style ( es, Arquitectura neocolonial española) is an architectural stylistic movement arising in the early 20th century based on the Spanish Colonial architecture of the Spanish colonization of the Americas. In the ...

mansion in the

Arcadia Arcadia may refer to: Places Australia * Arcadia, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney * Arcadia, Queensland * Arcadia, Victoria Greece * Arcadia (region), a region in the central Peloponnese * Arcadia (regional unit), a modern administrative un ...

neighborhood of Phoenix. Built in 1924–1925 by the Phoenix architectural firm

Fitzhugh & Byron Fitzhugh & Byron was an architectural partnership in Phoenix, Arizona, whose partners were Lee Mason Fitzhugh (1877–1937) and Lester A. Byron (1889–1963). The firm, along with architect Henry Trost in Tucson and George Washington Smith in Ajo ...

, the mansion is known as the earliest adobe revival property in the Phoenix area. It is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

and on the historic register for the City of Phoenix. The property was built for J.E. Thompson, who was once a

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

candidate for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

from Arizona. He was also the younger brother of

William Boyce Thompson William Boyce Thompson (May 13, 1869 – June 27, 1930) was an American mining engineer, financier, prominent in the Republican party, philanthropist, and founder of Newmont Mining. Thompson was one of the significant early twentieth centu ...

. The 1950s television show ''

26 Men ''26 Men'' is a syndicated American Western television series about the Arizona Rangers, a law-enforcement group limited to 26 active members. By March 1958, the program was carried on 158 stations in the United States. The program was also broad ...

'' was filmed, in part, on the estate. The house was largely vacant in the 1950s and 1960s, during which time local children believed the property to be haunted. Sometime while J.E. Thompson was residing in the house, he is known to have shot and killed a man on the property who threatened to kidnap his son if Thompson did not pay a ransom of $35,000. He later gave the money to the family after learning that the slain man's wife was ill. In 1970, the property was renovated and became a designer show house. The estate today is surrounded by the El Coronado Estates community which was built in the late '60s and early '70s.

References

External links

Picture of the property

Property specs

El Coronado Estates on Google Maps
{{National Register of Historic Places Houses completed in 1925 Houses on the National Register of Historic Places in Arizona Houses in Phoenix, Arizona Mission Revival architecture in Arizona Spanish Colonial Revival architecture in Arizona National Register of Historic Places in Maricopa County, Arizona 1925 establishments in Arizona