And talk about poetic names: this 918 acre ranch is located in the town of Venus, which was originally named “Gossip”, until its development in the late 1880s. According to Wikipedia, a J.C. Smythe purchased 80 acres of cornfields in the northeastern corner of Johnson County, planned a town, and named it “Venus” after the daughter of a local doctor. Wiki doesn’t say if he had a crush on Venus, but come on: dude names a town after girl? Bet he scored… some points!
By 1888 the new town had a post office and 10,000 residents, located at the junction of two major railroads. By the 1920’s Venus even had a small college. Then came the Great Depression and the growth of Dallas-Fort Worth and no matter how pretty that girl was, Venus just didn’t cut it as a metropolis. Soon it was just a one-drugstore town. Remember those?
Alas, Venus perked back up in the late 1940s, and the southward expansion of the DFW actually helped it grow. Venus original would have been so thrilled.
Allen and Talia’s listing offers a spectacular sportswoman’s resort retreat with something for everyone. There is the 4700 plus square foot main residence built in 2006 (five bedrooms, four full and two half baths) for the primary owners with that big port cochere to protect your big hair during a Texas storm. What did Ann Richards say? “Neither snow nor rain can move my hair.” Not with THIS port cochere.
The main house is decked out in total Texas ranch haute complete with a well-stocked bar, animal heads, and even a mirror on the ceiling above the bed. Wee, talk about a great place to check the big hair!
Aside: when I first moved to Texas, I was informed that a smart Texas woman gets up before her husband and puts on her makeup, then gets back to bed. Fine and dandy, said I, as long as he pays the mortgage, and only my name is on the deed!
The main house has lovely views of the pool and waterfall spa, plus the high fenced deer preserve. There is a guest house for the kids, complete with a private racquet ball court, gym and spa. Yep, one room is a dedicated massage and facial room. I think you could even do Botox in here!
There is a private tennis court, a climate controlled garage-game room. Kids got you down? Whining too much? Take out that aggression at an eight station skeet range. There’s a nice manager’s home complete with 8 horse barn stalls and cattle shoots plus two large sheds. You are only a 45 minute ride away from Big D or Cow Town, but Amazon delivers as does Neimans and Nordstroms. Listing price: $18 million but hey, mom is worth it!
And who wouldn’t want a return address that says you are from Venus?
Happy Mother’s Day to all the mamas out there! Folk historian Joyce Gibson Roach wrote “The emancipation of women may have begun not with the vote, nor in the cities where women marched and carried signs and protested, but rather when they mounted a good cowhorse and realized how different and fine the view.”
Especially with your own private spa in the back-yard!
