New Book on an Old House in Tucson, Arizona

STORIED PROPERTY

Through her determination, María Cordova turned her downtown adobe home into a place where history, urban renewal, and preservation politics collided.

Drawing on archival research, Storied Property examines the layered meanings of La Casa Cordova, a Tucson landmark often referred to as the oldest house in the city and located within the Tucson Museum of Art’s Historic Block.

Author Lydia R. Otero is a historian and memorialist, born, raised, and rooted in Tucson’s oldest barrios.

In downtown Tucson, La Casa Cordova has long been described as the city’s oldest building, yet its story is far more complicated.

In Storied Property: María Cordova’s Casa, Lydia Otero moves María Navarrete Cordova to the center of the story. Living for decades in her adobe home and often speaking through local newspapers, María was forced out through eminent domain in 1972. Her and her family's removal cleared the way for preservationists to reshape the property’s meaning.

Drawing on court documents, news coverage, and María’s own words, Otero examines how urban renewal and historic preservation converged on this storied site.

The book goes beyond historical debates, questioning even the deeds that claim ownership. It asks what it means to protect a building while erasing the people who gave it life and what that reveals about how history is written and remembered.