A woodworking community of learning and craftsmanship.

Villa Montezuma Shop Tour

by Tom York

SDFWA members dazzled by the prowess of woodworkers and stained glass makes during a tour of historic Villa Montezuma in downtown San Diego

Members of SDFWA took an unusual shop tour on Saturday. June 8, when they visit the Village Montezuma Museum just east of downtown San Diego in the Sherman Heights neighborhood.

World-class pianist Jesse Shepard built the historic house in 1887 at an exorbitant cost of $26,000 in 1880 values.

The interior features room after room filled with intricately carved woodwork and molding as well as rare stained glass and hand-painted windows, which was of great interest to the visiting woodworkers.

Shepard became a short-lived owner. He sold the house just two years after construction and detail work was completed and left town to tour the major cities of Europe. He never returned.

The property went through a series of owners until 1971 when the city of San Diego bought the property as a donation from the San Diego Historical Society.

Representatives from the nonprofit Friends of the Villa Montezuma Museum led woodworkers through the two-story structure, which holds many examples of late 19th-century craftsmanship, especially lots of finishing details and carvings in the ample wood interior.

Docents explained to the visiting woodworkers that the second phase of a $5 million restoration program will soon get underway, which will feature repairing and repainting the exterior of the Victorian-era structure.

Few repairs are contemplated for the inside, given the successful preservation of the woodwork and special stained glass in the window.

The shop tour was conducted in three sessions because of capacity limitations in the home, and all who attended were awed by the many aspects of great woodworking.

Written by Tom York
Daily newspaper reporter and editor for years and years.

Craftsman Referral Terms

BACKGROUND
The San Diego Fine Woodworkers Association (SDFWA) is a 501(c)3 non-profit dedicated to the education, promotion, and execution of the principles of fine woodworking.
The SDFWA frequently receives requests from people seeking the service of a woodworker. Therefore, although custom woodworking for hire is not the purpose of our organization, we offer this referral service to the public so that they might connect with a woodworker.

SCOPE
SDFWA does not screen or warrant the skills or work of any craftsman. The public should use their own discretion and due diligence before hiring any craftsman, from any source, including this one.
The sole role of SDFWA in this referral service is limited to providing our member woodworkers with your completed form. It is up to each craftsman to initiate a contact with the requester.

PROCEDURE
After a requester submits a project, the form will be emailed to our list of participating craftsmen. If a craftsman is interested in the project, they will contact the client directly, and a two-way conversation can begin.

As the craftsmen themselves choose which projects to respond to, this means that it is probable that some project requests will receive no response. If you do not receive a response in a reasonable time, please submit your request again, using the provided referral form.
Note that contacting SDFWA directly will not achieve the desired results.

DISCLAIMER
By agreeing to these Terms, and by continuing to submit this Referral Form, and by utilizing one or more of the services of any of these craftsmen, you are agreeing to contract exclusively with that individual craftsman and to defend, indemnify and hold harmless the SDFWA Organization, its officers, officials, employees and volunteers from any and all claims, injuries, damages, losses or suits including attorney fees, arising out of or in connection with the performance of this agreement, and any and all failures, damages, or otherwise negative outcomes caused directly or indirectly by the craftsmen you employ to do any project initiated by this Form. This does not preclude you from pursuing legal remedies from the individual craftsman that you employ. But any remedy you pursue is restricted to that individual craftsman, and does not include the SDFWA organization or any of its volunteer members.