A century ago, when oilman M.H. Marr was looking for a new homestead for his young family, he came across a rolling parcel on the then-outskirts of Dallas that is now an iconic corner in the heart of Preston Hollow.
The dominion laid a foundation for the Marr family to grow, found businesses, and play a key role in the building of Dallas throughout most of the 20th century. It was here that Marr and his socialite wife, Adah Yale Marr, hosted important business meetings and lavish social gatherings for many of the names synonymous with Dallas: The Hunt, Meadows, and DeGolyer families, to name a few.
Welcome to Sunnyslope, the three-acre grand estate at the southwest corner of Inwood Road and Park Lane that holds the story of the Marr family’s vibrant and lauded business, social and philanthropic history over the past 100 years and that now offers a rich opportunity for a new family and its legacy to be continued.
“Dallas has very little land available to build a true luxury estate, but this three-acre property is the perfect backdrop for the ultimate in luxury living and true Southern hospitality,” says Susan Baldwin, executive vice president at Allie Beth Allman and Associates who is listing the property.
The estate, surrounded by white wrought-iron fencing with entrances on three sides, opens to mature vegetation and dense landscaping at the main entrance. Hundred-year-old oak and magnolia trees that dot the property seem to be constantly stretching outward while also reaching for the sky.
The estate’s centerpiece is its traditional two-story, 5,000-square-foot main brick home with slate roof. Also on the property are a two-bedroom adjacent cottage, a greenhouse, and two workshops, including a state-of-the-art mechanical and technology center where the Marrs’ son Ray worked on numerous engineering and film projects over the years.
The main house features plaster walls, coved ceilings, and hardwood floors. It has four bedrooms and three baths, and, on opposite sides of the main entry staircase, a formal living room and a formal dining room with views from both to the neatly manicured lawn. Another staircase is located at the back of the home, which also has a working elevator, an exercise area, a bonus room, an upstairs balcony area overlooking the grounds and a four-car garage.
Off the formal living room, dark-stained oak paneling encases a home office that is centrally positioned like a ship’s steering cabin with multiple windows to three sides of the estate. The room’s antique desk and built-in bookcase filled with an array of literature harken to a period of enterprise, entrepreneurship and elevated classical learning.
The home’s original kitchen has been updated with modern and stainless-steel appliances and is steps away from the breakfast nook where a doting Adah Marr served countless Saturday lunches to her children and grandchildren retreating from hours of play and discovery on the grounds and behind small secret gardens.
A large family room boasts a wet bar, built-ins for books, awards, and accolades, and sitting areas for conversation, reading, or watching television. Over the years thousands of guests congregated in this room for social events and holiday parties that spilled out onto a patio and its flowing lawn. Perhaps the room’s most-prized asset seems to be its quietude — floor-to-ceiling glass that showcases the world outside, yet is thick enough to envelope those cocooned inside with calmness and serenity.
“As you turn from the gate onto the main driveway, you’re easily taken back not only to an era of exquisite parties and black-tie affairs but of children’s innocent laughter as they played tag, midnight ghost or searched for fireflies deep into the summer night,” Baldwin says. “This space is calling for new generations and new memories.”
For your private tour contact Susan Baldwin at [email protected] or at 214-763-1591.
