GPS City GuideEl PasoRichard Caples Building

Stop 15 of 29 · El Paso audio walking tour

Richard Caples Building

El Paso · 1910 · Madero headquarters in Revolution

What you'll hear here: about a minute on Richard Caples Building — how it came to be, who it mattered to, and what to look for while you're standing in front of it.

Picture Madero's revolutionary headquarters inside this seven-story building in El Paso, Texas. This historic seven‑story block holds a layered story: it began as a five‑story building for Richard Caples in 1910 and was the first reinforced concrete structure erected in El Paso. That very year it became significant as the Francisco I. Madero headquarters during the Mexican Revolution and served as the base for the Mexican revolutionary newspaper La Regeneración.

The original fifth floor was leased to the Y.M.C.A., a civic presence high in the building. In 1915 J.G. McGrady bought the property and leased the basement and first floor to the F. W. Woolworth Company, anchoring retail at street level. Two years later he added two more stories; those extra floors were designed by the regional firm Trost & Trost, completing the seven‑story profile you see today.

The building’s importance was later recognized when it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 24, 1980. Woolworth's took the basement and first floor in 1915, and two years later Trost & Trost added the two upper stories that complete the seven-story profile.

Where it is

Coordinates
31.75806, -106.48667
Area
El Paso
Era
1910 · Madero headquarters in Revolution
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Three stops free. No account needed. The audio plays itself as you walk.