It’s spring home tour season, and we are kicking it off with Park Cities Historic and Preservation Society’s Historic Home Tour on Saturday, April 24th. We know you long to get out there and pound the pavement, but there is a lot to love about a virtual home tour, like not having to put on makeup or real pants!
This year in particular is one you don’t want to miss because the iconic Williams House at 3805 McFarlin Boulevard is included. Legendary architect David R. Williams built this historic Texas ranch house in 1932. It was a custom design for former University Park mayor Ebert Williams and is one of the decade’s feel-good historic preservation stories. As the most notable example of Texas Regionalism and a tribute to architectural disruptors everywhere, we were all in fear of its demise when it went on the market in 2019.
However, Jan and Trevor Rees-Jones came to the rescue. They not only purchased the 1.15-acre property and have promised to keep it intact, but they are also the honorary chairs of the Park Cities Historic and Preservations Society’s Historic Home Tour. This is what stewardship should look like in Dallas, and our hats are off to Jan and Trevor.
The excitement continues with another beauty we’ve featured. This gorgeous Hal Thompson-designed, Italian Renaissance home at 4412 Lakeside Drive was built in 1918. It’s another excellent example of how to properly protect and preserve a historic house while updating it to a family’s needs.
More Italian Renaissance follows with the 1921 eclectic home at 3429 Drexel Avenue and the classic 1924 Colonial Revival at 3400 Drexel. Then we have the beautiful 1940s Neoclassical mansion at 7000 Vassar in Volk Estates designed by Gayden Thompson for Mr. and Mrs. Harold Volk.
Home tours are impossible without sponsors, so I want to give a shout-out to those who have made the Park Cities Historic and Preservation Historic Home Tour possible.
Highland Park Village is the Preservation Sponsor, and D Home is the Presenting Magazine Sponsor. Methodist Dallas is the Heritage Sponsor, the Platinum Sponsor is Allie Beth Allman & Associates Urban, and Legacy Sponsors include Lucinda Buford, Cynthia H. Beaird, and Christine McKenny.
“I am honored to give back to the community in which I sell real estate,” Mckenny said. “Funds raised from the tour will go towards landmarking historic properties, scholarships, and underwriting for a Distinguished Teacher Chair at HPISD. It is exciting that this year’s home tour will reach a broader audience since it is a virtual home tour — one can be anywhere and watch the tour. The Rees-Jones house on McFarlin was salvaged last year and has been deemed the most important home in Texas by Texas Monthly. PCHPS helped find a buyer who wanted to save this historic home. It has rarely been seen, and viewers will get a peek into this historic property. “
This historic home tour this year begins at 10 a.m on Saturday, April 24th, and will be available to watch for 48 hours.
