Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Benjamin Harrison tomb
Benjamin Harrison Gravesite
Bollard with visible car impact marks.
Waitzstraße
Bauvais-Amoureux House (Exterior)
Bauvais-Amoureux House
The exterior of the Anderson Abruzzo International Balloon Museum.
The Anderson Abruzzo Albuquerque International Balloon Museum
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
Juchheim’s main branch in Motomachi, Kobe.
Juchheim
Fanny O’Deas
Maine Beer Company
The dock at Cap’s Place
Cap’s Place Island Restaurant
The Puhoi Pub
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
A photograph of the burning mine taken during an excavation in 1969.
The Rebirth of Pennsylvania’s Infamous Burning Town
Caroline’s first Atlas Obscura place was the Lizzie Borden Bed and Breakfast Museum in Fall River, Massachusetts.
The Quest to Visit 1,000 Places
Sherman holds a bowl of pápa waháŋpi, a soup that “just connected to my soul.”
On 'Turtle Island,' Indigenous Food Is Not the Past—It’s the Future
The Trailing of Sheep is an annual festival marking the return of sheep from their high-mountain pastures.
Inside America’s First Destination Ski Town

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United States California San Diego Davis-Horton House

Davis-Horton House

The oldest standing structure in downtown San Diego.

San Diego, California

Added By
Jamie Laird
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
The Oldest House in New Town San Diego   jlaird / Atlas Obscura User
Museum Store, exterior   Avoiding Regret
Historic number 1   drialeimaj / Atlas Obscura User
Welcome sign at Davis-Horton House   blimpcaptain / Atlas Obscura User
  OBellus Fun / Atlas Obscura User
Upstairs bedroom display   Avoiding Regret
wallpaper fragments   Avoiding Regret
Museum Cat   drialeimaj / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

This Place Is a Stub

Help improve this place with additional information or photos.

Make an Edit

About

The Davis-Horton House, located in downtown San Diego, was actually constructed in Portland, Maine and shipped to the city in 1850 by William Heath Davis. The House is over 150 years old and was once a military barrack for Pre-Civil War soldiers, San Diego's first county hospital, and was the home of San Diego founding father Alonzo Horton. The building even has an espionage history, as it's alleged to have been a hideout for a German spy. Many people also believe the building is very much haunted. Today the Davis-Horton House is run as a non-profit museum by the Gaslamp Quarter Historical Foundation. 

Places

Discover your next amazing Atlas Place.

Get more unusual and extraordinary places each week with the Atlas Obscura Places newsletter.

Your newsletter subscriptions with us are subject to Atlas Obscura's Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Related Tags

Houses Museums Homes

Know Before You Go

You can take a self-guided tour of the house for $5 per person. An audio-guided tour is $10 for seniors and $8 for students. Guided walking tours and specialty tours are also available weekly.

Community Contributors

Added By

jlaird

Edited By

Avoiding Regret, drialeimaj, blimpcaptain, OBellus Fun

  • Avoiding Regret
  • drialeimaj
  • blimpcaptain
  • OBellus Fun

Published

September 4, 2019

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Davis-Horton House
410 Island Ave
San Diego, California, 92101
United States
32.710576, -117.160689
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Bum and Bobby

San Diego, California

miles away

Mick Jagger's Urinal

San Diego, California

miles away

San Diego Chinese Historical Museum

San Diego, California

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of San Diego

San Diego

California

Places 45
Stories 9

Nearby Places

Bum and Bobby

San Diego, California

miles away

Mick Jagger's Urinal

San Diego, California

miles away

San Diego Chinese Historical Museum

San Diego, California

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of San Diego

San Diego

California

Places 45
Stories 9

Related Places

  • This house was transported piece-by-piece from the Huizhou region of China.

    Salem, Massachusetts

    Yin Yu Tang: A Chinese Home

    A rare 16-bedroom Qing Dynasty house re-erected on the campus of the Peabody Essex Museum. 

  • Alatskivi Castle

    Alatskivi, Estonia

    Alatskivi Castle

    A wealthy aristocratic family built this Disney-worthy, fairy-tale castle.

  • Hallwylska Museet (Hallwyl Museum)

    Stockholm, Sweden

    Hallwylska Museet (Hallwyl Museum)

    The 19th-century home of Count and Countess von Hallwyl is now a museum.

  • Forbes Library

    Northampton, Massachusetts

    Calvin Coolidge Presidential Library and Museum

    A single room pays homage to the prodigious achievements of the 30th President of the United States.

  • The house from the street.

    Shanghai, China

    Zhou Enlai's Former Residence

    The home where the first Premier of the People's Republic of China worked and lived.

  • Ethnographic Museum of Krüje

    Krujë, Albania

    Ethnographic Museum of Krujë

    Explore a traditional Albanian dwelling that pays tribute to the region's rich history.

  • A courtyard in the museum.

    Carthage, Tunisia

    Dar El Annabi

    This museum in the famously blue neighborhood of Sidi Bou Saïd showcases a traditional Tunisian lifestyle.

  • The Walt Disney Hometown Museum, 2008.

    Marceline, Missouri

    Walt Disney Hometown Museum

    A celebration of the animation wizard's childhood home and antique railroad memorabilia collection.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2026 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.