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Brownsville Texas History Trail
Item 7 of 16
La Madrileña is one of the more architecturally unique buildings in Brownsville. It was built in 1892 by Spanish native Adrian Ortiz (1860-1957), who became a prosperous merchant and prominent figure in the city. Ortiz, who was born in Madrid, Spain, named the building La Madrileña, which means "native of Madrid." The building is an excellent example of vernacular commercial architecture, featuring a number of interesting elements including elaborate corbeled brickwork, curved parapets, pinnacles, and several pairs of wooden doors set in bays on the street-facing sides of the structure. The building today appears to house a law firm.

Known for its unique architecture, La Madrileña was built in 1892 by Spanish native Adrian Ortiz. The store remained a fixture for the community for several decades.

Known for its unique architecture, La Madrileña was built in 1892 by Spanish native Adrian Ortiz. The store remained a fixture for the community for several decades.

Adrian Ortiz was born in 1860 and, apparently, immigrated to the U.S. before he was 18 in order to avoid being drafted into the Spanish army. He chose to settle in Brownsville, presumably, to join a relative, Juan Fernandez, who was already living here and owned a general store. Brownsville also had an established Spanish community. Ortiz worked for Fernandez and got married within a few years of arriving. After gaining enough experience to start his own general store, he built La Madrileña in 1892. He sold clothing, food, groceries, hardware, and other goods including wine and dried codfish. The majority of his customers were local farmers and he forged business relationships within the Spanish community to supply his store. La Madrileña also became an important gathering place for the community.

Ortiz passed away in 1957. The store closed soon after and the building was eventually abandoned and fell into disrepair. In 1987, a lawyer (not the same one who appears to own it now) bought and rehabilitated it. The old building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1988 for its architecture and association with Ortiz.

Cantu, Ethel & Jones, Dwayne. "La Madrileña." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. November 17, 1988. https://catalog.archives.gov/OpaAPI/media/40971448/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/88002384.pdf.

"La Madrileña." The Historical Marker Database. Accessed September 30, 2020. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=117995.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:La_Madrilena_Brownsville_Texas.jpg