James Twiggs, an Irish innkeeper, and his wife Lucy Stillwell-Twiggs built Stillwell House in 1901 as a boarding house for railroad workers. Since 2000, the historic building has been part of the Si Charro! catering and events program. It was purchased by the Flores family, known for El Charro Café, for a family wedding. 

The property is now owned and operated by Candace Flores Carrillo, who has more than 25 years of experience in catering and event design. Flores Carrillo oversees events at the Stillwell House as well as the catering program for El Charro Café, Charro Steak and the Monica. 

In the next few months, the Stillwell House will be opening its doors to the public with seasonal open houses and markets. The series will begin with the Ghouls Night Out Halloween Market & Open House on Thursday, Oct. 29. 

The series will continue with the Friendsgiving Fall Market & Open House on Saturday, Nov. 21, and the Cocoa & Cookies Holiday Market & Open House on Saturday, Dec. 12.

During each open house, around 20 to 25 local vendors will sell items such as baked goods, arts and crafts, curated foods and gift items. 

Themed dishes will be available to purchase, as well as items from Si Charro! restaurants such as holiday tamales, salsas and pastries. 

“We pull from our family businesses and represent them there and then welcome all of our wonderful vendors,” Flores Carrillo said. 

In the past during open houses, they have hosted special activities and entertainment, such as live music and a flower arranging class. 

Throughout the year, Flores Carrillo opens the property to visitors.  

They have hosted hundreds of open houses, but this is their fourth market. 

Flores Carrillo said that through the markets, they want to offer a space for local business owners, makers and artisans to sell their goods and interact with guests. 

The historic home is known for both its elegance and its warmth. It is Victorian-inspired with special features such as a brick-lined courtyard, fruit trees, fountains, twinkling lights and double mesquite wood gates. 

Spaces on the property include the courtyard garden, main house and 1901 Bar Room, which was formerly known as the Carriage House. The 1901 Bar Room is a cantina-style space with Southwest flair. 

The property has had a storied history. 

In the 1980s, it fell into disrepair, and its façade and interior were damaged by fires. In 1988, it was purchased by a local couple, who had plans to turn it into a sheet-music store and performance space. They completed the renovations and started using it as an event space in 1990. 

Since they have owned the property, Flores Carrillo and her family have tried to keep the home’s vintage charm while modernizing and maintaining it. 

The space regularly hosts events such as weddings, corporate functions, engagement parties, baby showers, birthday parties, celebrations of life, holiday events and quinceañeras. 

Flores Carrillo said they host around 100 weddings a year at the venue. 

“Stillwell offers a lot of value in the fact that it’s well-maintained and has its own charm. I always tell people to lean into that and take advantage of that cost savings… People love the garden and the lights, especially at night with all the fairy lights. Then, the charm of the two-story, historic main house with those cathedral ceilings, the wood floors and the exposed brick walls, it’s just very warm and inviting in there…Then, of course, we have the bar and dancing room. The bar is from the historic Pioneer Hotel. It’s over 125 years old,” Flores Carrillo said. 

Flores Carrillo said the open houses allow visitors to experience different parts of the property, and often, they will decide to host special events at the historic home. 

“I wanted people to see the space and envision it for different things. That’s how the markets came to be,” Flores Carrillo said. 

Her company handles the catering for events at the property. 

“We do kosher. We do vegan and gluten-free menus. We really do it all. People really look for the Tucson-themed menus, incorporating regional ingredients, regional offerings,” Flores Carrillo said.  

Many of the dishes are ones that Flores Carrillo makes at home or has tried on her travels. 

“There’s a chicken that I made when I was dating, and a lot of people make it. It’s called ‘Marry Me Chicken,’ and we actually have that on the menu. It’s one of my best sellers. It’s just a wonderful chicken dish, and it’s very popular for our couples. There was a folk tale that any time a girl served this to a guy that she was trying to get to propose to her that he would… It’s a cute story. We live in a rough world. We like the romance,” Flores Carrillo said. 

The Stillwell House has been a popular spot for her own family’s weddings. 

“My oldest brother got married there to his first wife. … Then, all of our siblings and cousins have gotten married at Stillwell, so it’s a family spot…We don’t like to do anything at home. We have tiny houses, and who wants to do the cleanup? We might as well do it there. It’s like a home away from home for us,” Flores Carrillo said. 

She said the space was a good fit for her family’s events and business. 

“We’ve always loved downtown with its historic charm. We were wanting to have something in the neighborhood we grew up in. We loved the vintage feel of the building and the architecture….Then, to have a garden in downtown, it’s very unique with beautiful architectural bones. We saw the potential to put our food in there and offer value to couples. We wanted to create a different kind of experience,” Flores Carrillo said. 

Other families have also held different events at the Stillwell House and have a connection to the historic home. 

“The lady I’m meeting with today, she’s had multiple events there. She was married there. She’s had showers there, and now she’s having a baby shower next week. We have lot of families that do multiple things. They become part of our family. I got married there 15 years ago. We’re still married, so it must have worked,” Flores Carrillo said.  

Flores Carrillo said the space can host a range of different events. 

“My son’s first birthday party there was a Snoopy party. We had a birthday party for rescue dogs. They did a dog buffet…. We’ve had our birthdays and anniversaries there. My son graduated last year. He had his confirmation party there. It’s definitely whatever you can think of, we can transform it,” Flores Carrillo said. 

Flores Carrillo’s mother, Chef Carlotta Flores, used to lead Stillwell Catering Co. She is getting older but still comes in to help with the menus. 

Flores Carrillo said she wants to continue in the tradition of being community and family-focused. 

“It’s nice that we’re a small, family-owned business. It’s a woman-owned, Latin-owned business. I employ an incredible team. We have to continue to be innovative, especially after having survived COVID. I think it’s important to offer people value and a wonderful experience at various price points. Resorts are wonderful, but they’re owned by big companies. I’m a small company, and I have a lot of families that work for me. My mother gave us that example to employ families to keep things in our Tucson community, and Stillwell House is very much about the Tucson community,” she said.