The 1853 Glasscock Mansion was at this site until 1923, when Rudolph Mueller and his wife, Laura Von Boeckmann of the 1874 Von Boeckmann Printing Company, bought the property and razed the “Old Haunted House.” Although some believe they retained the cornerstone as part of the foundation for the home they constructed in 1927, family members say that Laura’s one condition for purchasing the property was that not one stone of the old haunted house be used. Therefore, to give their future home a solid foundation, Rudolph blasted into the hillside to create a full basement.

Rudolph began working as a shipping clerk in 1901 and worked his way up to become the chairman of the board of Calcasieu Lumber Company, where he worked for 50 years. Mueller managed the Calcasieu Lumber Company while William Drake was in the army during WWII. He was also on the Austin School Board for 17 years.

The Colonial Revival house features Adams style details including a Palladian tripartite front door, Corinthian columns, balustrade above, full-height portico, and symmetrical placement of windows on brick exteriors. Custom ironwork graces the second story windows, and woodcarvings by Peter Mansbendel are in the interior. Ornamental ironwork is by Fritz Weigl.

After Rudolph’s death, Mueller’s daughter Frances “Sug” Danforth and her husband William Paul Danforth raised their family here. Danforth, an attorney, was an examiner with the Texas Railroad Commission for 31 years. Sug taught journalism classes and was on the staff of the Austin American Statesman. The house has been a residence since it was built, first for Laura and Rudolph Mueller and their two children, Frances Mueller Danforth and R.G. Mueller, Jr and then, Frances and William (Bill) Danforth and their three sons: William P. Danforth, Jr., Douglas Mueller Danforth and Donald Lee Danforth. The house is now owned by Doug Danforth and thus remains in the Mueller-Danforth family. Robert Mueller Airport was named for Rudolph’s brother.