Rafael Guastavino, an architect and builder of Spanish origin, came to Asheville, North Carolina to work on the Biltmore House in the mid-1890’s. Liking the area, he bought land and built a house near Black Mountain. In 1905, he joined forces with the local Catholic community and fellow architect, R. S. Smith, to design and build St. Lawrence Catholic Church. He has been credited with the revival of an ancient tile and mortar building system that had been used in Catalonia and other parts of Spain for centuries.