06/29/2025
ALBERT BACON FALL MANSION, AN EL PASO LANDMARK: FOR SALE
The El Paso Times reported yesterday (06/27/2025) that the Albert Fall Mansion is for sale. It is listed on our Most Endangered Places list. The historical significance of this structure is astonishing. It was erected in 1907, and designed by El Paso's first registered architect, the iconic Ernest Krause, according to research published by the Trost Society in 2020. We are hoping for the best for this remarkable structure, which **may** be Krause's only remaining residential design in town. Following is an article published at the old Trost Society's page in 2020:
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Located at 1725 Arizona and overlooking Central El Paso, the 1907 Albert Fall mansion has been remodeled and restored by the City of El Paso. A Classical Revival architectural masterpiece, the home was originally built for Albert Bacon Fall (1861-1944), a Circuit Judge in the Territory of New Mexico, and its first elected Senator from 1912 to 1921 when it attained Statehood. Fall also served as the Secretary of the Interior from 1921 to 1923, but was convicted of accepting a bribe during the infamous Teapot Dome scandal.
Fall also played a role in two famous murder trials in local history. He represented Oliver Lee in the Albert Jennings Fountain murder trial, winning Lee's not-guilty verdict; then in later years successfully defended Jesse Wayne Brazel, who had been accused of murdering Pat Garrett.
Fall lived in his mansion for only 4 years after it was erected in 1907. By 1912 it had become home to El Paso hotelier R. Burt Orndorff, when we speculate that Fall needed to move into New Mexico at the beginning of his tenure as State Representative there. Orndorff was the long-time General Manager of both the Orndorff Hotel and Hotel Sheldon in El Paso, in addition to the New Orndorff Hotel in Tucson, Arizona, as administrator of his family's Hotel dynasty.
The structure was designed in a stunning Classical Revival style by one of El Paso's pioneer architects, Ernest Krause. It is remarkable in design and historic significance, and Preservation Texas applauds the City of El Paso for its purchase and renovation.
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Text and research provided to Preservation Texas by Mark Stone and edited by Victor Hurtado, citing the above referenced links in addition to:
-- To view Preservation Texas' Most Endangered Places listing visit https://www.preservationtexas.org/mep/albert-fall-mansion
-- The El Paso County Historical Society at https://www.facebook.com/EPCHS/posts/1478557502198372
-- Wikipedia (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_B._Fall)
-- Newspaper articles and City Directory entries accessed through the Library of Congress' Chronicling America project at https://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov/ and the University of North Texas (Denton) Digital Archives at https://texashistory.unt.edu/
