By Matt Weinstein
Programs Associate, Preservation Dallas
For those of us who never knew Dallas before Interstate 30, it is difficult to imagine The Cedars as an affluent district of large homes with manicured lawns that was once the southern gateway to downtown Dallas. Few homes tell the neighborhood’s story as well as the Blue House.
A giant Victorian with a carriage house, the Blue House was one of the first houses in The Cedars, a prototype for the prosperous houses that followed. Ironically, it also became one of the last to remain standing, a conspicuous — and, as the years went by, an increasingly blighted — reminder of bygone days.
Dallas’ Fascination With The Blue House
For decades, the Blue House stood sentry overlooking Interstate 30 and captured the imagination of countless Dallasites. Among them was Mark Birnbaum, a documentarian who lives in The Cedars, and has researched the neighborhood — originally a center of the city’s German-Jewish community —and its history, extensively.
You can see the trailer for Birnbaum’s eponymous documentary about the Blue House below.
Others who were captivated by the house included preservationists Mark Martinek and Jay Baker. The pair have taken on the significant project of purchasing the Blue House and its carriage house, moving the buildings several blocks to a new site in the center of the neighborhood, and renovating them to serve as rental units. Now, they are finally hitting the market. One unit — on the ground floor of the main house — has already been leased for a tenant expected to take occupancy later this month. The other units are expected to go quickly.
Preservation Dallas has chosen the Blue House for its first In-Town Outing of 2023, presented in partnership with The Dallas Jewish Historical Society. The outing will be held at 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 29, and will start with a presentation by Birnbaum at the home of Jay Baker, who lives a few doors down. Donations are optional, but appreciated, and will be split evenly between the two organizations.
If You Go
What: Preservation Dallas In-Town Outing at The Blue House
Where: 1519 Beaumont Street Dallas, TX 75215
When: 1:30 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 29
Tickets: Available for free on Eventbrite
