On the 13th of October, 1847, as soon as the United States Army was quietly established in the City of Mexico, a meeting of officers was called with a view toward forming a Club and opening a clubhouse for the entertainment of its members and their guests while in the City.
General C. F. Smith, Col John B. Grayson, Gen. John Bankhead Magruder, Gen. Robert Buchanan, General C. F. Stone, Professor Henry Coppee, of the Regular Army, and General Franklin Pierce of the volunteers, and President of the United States, were the organizers of the Club.
The original home of the Club was the handsome residence of Señor Bocanegra, Mexico's former Minister to the United States. His palace, built during the 18th century for the Viceroy of Spain, was located on one of the streets leading out of the Calle Plateros, not far from the headquarters of Gen. Winfield Scott, Commander in Chief.