Dallas Heritage Village is a 13-acre haven of calm in the middle of our bustling city. It allows you to stop, step back in time, and see what life was like long ago.
The area was once a municipal park, but now it houses the most extensive collection of nineteenth century homes and commercial buildings in Texas.
However, If it weren’t for a dedicated group of ladies, it would not exist.
A Standoff at Miller Mansion
Back in 1966, the park had fallen into a sad state, and the city wanted to revive it. At the same time, a group of prominent and determined women led by Mrs. Sawnie Aldredge, stood on the front porch of the Miller Mansion in Oak Cliff and won their standoff against the bulldozers lined up to demolish it.
This incident led to the founding of the Heritage Society in the 1960s and a new purpose for what was then called Old City Park.
Christened Millermore, the two-story house was given to the people of Dallas by the Heritage Society, and the revival began. It’s now an idyllic park filled with authentic historic structures that have been moved here over the past 40 years from locations all over the Metroplex.
Authentic History in Downtown Dallas
It’s so authentic that photographers and filmmakers have relied on it as a location for years. It certainly saved my bacon a couple of times.
As a young photo stylist, I was charged with finding a general store to showcase Mr. Herman Lay in his early years, before we were all eating Frito pie! Dallas Heritage Village was a perfect location. I also had to kit out a baseball team in 1920s gear for a Dr Pepper ad, and the park served me once more as a period-perfect location.
“The Dallas Heritage Village is a treasure for our city,” former curator and present Dallas Landmark Commissioner Evelyn Montgomery said. “It offers an experience of our past you cannot get anywhere else. As an assemblage, it’s now old enough to be on the National Register of Historic Places.”
More Than History
The beauty of Dallas Heritage Village is that it is much more than an homage to history.
Not only has it served the film and photography industry, but it also serves the general public. You can rent small or medium venues for events, get married in the Pilot Grove Church, take a frontier blacksmithing class, or just bring the kids out for some fresh air and to pet the donkeys Waylon and Willie.
The village has sparked many Dallas traditions, from the Old Fashioned Fourth to the longstanding Candlelight weekends during the Christmas holidays. The proceeds of these events and rentals help to maintain the structures, which is never-ending.
“The buildings are looked at daily,” Ron Siebler, owner of Siebler Remodeling & Historic Preservation, said. “The issue is always finding the funds to do the maintenance.”
Siebler has been a volunteer at Dallas Heritage Village for decades and has been working on restoration projects here since 2012, with his first being The Pilot Grove Church.
“Although the buildings here do not have historic designations, we approach the work in the same way,” Siebler said.
“Preserving these structures gives us a unique opportunity to tell the diverse stories of Dallas and North Texas.” Deputy Director at Dallas Heritage Village, Preston Cooley, said. “We have buildings that represent many different histories and people. Our setting of 13 acres makes us the perfect place for families, couples, and individuals to not only learn but to have fun and engage in the community. And we have a bright future as we rethink how a museum created in the mid 20th century can move forward with purpose and relevance in the 21st century. We have big plans for not only our structures but for our daily exhibits and programming!”
We encourage our newcomers to discover the history of your new city, and for those that have been here for a minute, get out of the house and rediscover Dallas Heritage Village.
As Montgomery said, “It’s a treasure trove!”
