Villa Anna was built in 1874-76 as a residence for the ironworks proprietor and politician Carl Edward Ekman as a gift to his daughter Anna Gustafva Ekman and her husband Knut Henning Gezelius von Schéele. The building was designed by the brothers Axel and Hjalmar Kumlien who were influenced by German and Austrian interpretations of the Italian Renaissance. The brothers are also known as the architects of the Grand Hotel in Stockholm.