Prominent Italian building contractor Carlo Digneo constructed the Digneo-Valdes House, 1231 Paseo de Peralta, in 1889. Digneo was a leader in the small but influential Italian community in Santa Fe. Archbishop Jean-Baptiste Lamy brought Digneo and his extended family of skilled masons from Naples, Italy to New Mexico to complete work on St. Francis Cathedral. The Digneo brothers secured many public and private commissions in New Mexico, including the Bernalillo County Courthouse and Hodgin Hall, the first building on the University of New Mexico campus. After the death of his first wife and marriage to Magdalena Delgado, Digneo built a new home for his second family at 1233 Paseo de Peralta, directly west of his former home, in 1911. Both the Digneo-Valdes and the Digneo-Moore properties represent the work of master mason and builder Carlo Digneo, who helped introduce traditional masonry practices to the region.
From Old Santa Fe Today, 5th edition by Audra Bellmore with photographs by Simone Frances.