Built by merchant A. T. Monroe, grand-nephew of U.S. president James Monroe, the Greek Revival house has a projecting pedimented portico supported on unusually slender square columns. The outer corners of the one-story house are marked with narrow pilasters, and an entablature runs under the shallow eaves. Narrow horizontal wood siding covers brick bearing walls. The end-gabled roof has four narrow dormers, possibly a later addition to make the attic usable. Large shuttered windows extending to the floor and the double front door with sidelights and transom make the house look larger. A continuous five-bay, shed-roofed porch on square columns runs the length of the south side. The house was restored by Raiford Stripling of San Augustine and opened as a museum in 1974.
On the same block at 713 E. Houston, the First Presbyterian Church (1927) is a curious mix of styles. A classical pedimented portico of two monumental Ionic columns in antis is bracketed by stout crenellated towers. Despite the round-arched windows throughout, the interior furnishings are Gothic in style.