Our Monday Morning Millionaire is an exquisite 1929 Highland Park Tudor Revival at 4312 Lorraine Avenue. We spend a lot of time researching these homes to bring you the history and details, but we are stumped by which brilliant builder or architect might have been involved. Jon D. Carsey & Robert Linskie built the O.W. McGraw home at 4311 Lorraine, across the street. It could also have been built byMarion Fooshee & James Cheek, or by George Marble, but we are leaning towards Carsey and Linski. They built over 50 homes in the Park Cities between 1928 and 1947, and that marvelous stone embellishment around the front door looks like their work. But, if you have some insider information, please let us know.
It takes a sophisticated buyer to understand the significance and value of an extraordinary Tudor Revival. Homes built for the movers and shakers of Dallas society in the 1920s were not simply built, they were crafted. And this home has seen some movers and shakers. Sam A. Leake Jr. and his bride Betty Skillern, of the Skillern’s drugstore family, lived here in the in the 1940s. The Leakes were an amazing young couple. They married in 1938 and two years later, during WWII, sheltered the niece and nephew of English author Storm Jameson. In 1949 Jameson paid them a visit after the publication of her book, The Moment of Truth. This is another one of those homes where you wish the walls could talk.
Kudos to the past and present owners of this stately Tudor Revival for maintaining architectural integrity and original details while updating the home beautifully. You know you’re in for something special the moment you step inside the double foyer. While you might expect the original tile floors, stunning millwork, stained and leaded glass windows, you’ve probably seldom seen a dramatic split staircase, and we’ll take bets on how many of you have ever seen a custom-crafted original brass horn handrail!
The 4,640-square-foot Tudor Revival has four bedrooms, four bathrooms, and a powder bath. It’s an outstanding example of the right way to update these homes. We would not be surprised to see the gourmet kitchen on Pinterest and Houzz.com pages, with those beauriful soapstone countertops and custom cabinetry.
The Tudor Revival boasts what we now consider an essential for every property — a guest cottage. This one overlooks the pool and has been recently updated. Whether you have visiting parents or a returning college student, guest cottages provide huge value.
There is another intriguing addition. “The present owner is a big hunter and fisherman,” Briggs Freeman Sotheby’s listing agent Gretchen Brasch said. “Behind the garage, on the ground level, is a room that has cabinets and drawers for all of your sporting equipment. He calls it the Hunting and Fishing Club.” Sounds like the perfect man cave to us.
We all know it’s not just a house that creates a home, it’s the neighborhood, and it does not get a lot better than this area of Highland Park. “It’s one of my favorite blocks,” Brasch said. “I think every house is either one of the fantastic restored Tudor Revivals or the more traditional late 1930s homes. There may be one new construction home. So much of the block has been preserved, and that’s rare.”
If you’re looking for a gracious home with real history and character, on a serene block, this is it. Gretchen Brasch and Elly Holder have this extraordinary Tudor Revival listed for $3.15 million.
Karen Eubank is the owner of Eubank Staging and Design. She has been an award-winning professional home stager for more than 25 years and a professional writer for 20 years. Karen is the mother of a son who’s studying music at The University of Miami. An ardent animal lover, she doesn’t mind one bit if your fur baby jumps right into her lap. Find Karen at www.eubankstaging.com
