Most Endangered Historic Places

With so many historic buildings in Dallas having uncertain futures, Preservation Dallas developed the Most Endangered Historic Places list to call attention to important historic sites which are at risk of being lost forever. The list recognizes the many significant properties that make up our neighborhoods and reflect: the lives of community leaders, historical events, important architects and builders, and the families who made Dallas their home. The list also highlights the value of the city’s historic architectural styles and building types of rapidly disappearing residential, commercial, and public architecture. These are places are important to the diverse history of our city and are irreplaceable community assets that tell the story of Dallas and its development.

2020 Most Endangered Historic Places

ATLAS METAL WORKS – 818 Singleton Boulevard (West Dallas)

The Atlas Metal Works industrial complex was built on land that was opened for development after construction of the Trinity River levees in the 1920s. The company, which started in 1904 manufactured culvert pipe, silos, stock tanks, and water cisterns with its original location near current-day City Hall. To meet growing demand, a 40,000 square foot facility was constructed in 1929 on 7 acres along Eagle Ford Road, now Singleton Boulevard. A free-standing Art Deco style office building was constructed and metal sheds with striking gable roofs were built for manufacturing. During World War II the facility expanded by 11,000 square feet.

Millard Storey was one of the founders of the company, and his sons Millard and Boude began working there around 1908. Boude Storey became the company president and served for nine years on the school board, with six of those as president. He continued to work for Atlas until his death in 1959. The company continues operating as a metal factory to this day under the Storey family.

A portion of Atlas’ acreage was sold several years ago for the construction of a large apartment complex and town homes. Gentrification is rampant in this area of the city with new construction on vacant lots and demolition of older structures for new construction. It is only a matter of time before a developer comes along with a large sum of money to purchase and raze the Atlas Metal Works for new development, thus destroying one of the few remaining examples of industrial architecture from the 1920s.

DEEP ELLUM – Main, Elm, Commerce, Canton Streets

Deep Ellum was settled after the Civil War by formerly enslaved men and women and became one of the most important African American areas of the city. It started as a residential district, but commerce and industry grew with the addition of nearby railroad tracks.

African Americans, along with Jewish immigrants, set up enterprises in the new commercial area providing one of the only areas where they were allowed to do business. Due to the railroad, a cotton gin factory and a Ford Model T plant opened in Deep Ellum. Beginning in the early 1900s, a slew of one and two-story brick commercial buildings were built, many of which survive today. In 1916, one of the most important buildings in Deep Ellum, the Grand Temple of the Black Knights of Pythias, opened and housed some of the earliest offices for Black doctors, dentists and lawyers. It was also a social center for the community with events regularly held in the building’s ballroom.

By the 1920s, Deep Ellum had become a hotbed for early jazz and blues musicians, hosting the likes of Blind Lemon Jefferson, Huddie “Leadbelly” Ledbetter, Texas Bill Day and Bessie Smith. Deep Ellum prospered in the first half of the 1900s, but as the popularity of the automobile grew it brought substantial changes to the area with the removal of the railroad tracks and numerous buildings to make way for Central Expressway. People were also moving to other areas of the city as desegregation of businesses and housing opened up additional opportunities. The area began to decline with the closing of businesses and clubs. It enjoyed a resurgence in the mid-1980s and 90s with new clubs featuring young musicians. That was followed by a period of decline before Deep Ellum started to diversify in the 2000’s with more restaurants and shops.

The success of the redevelopment efforts has brought new development pressure to the historic area. In the late 2010’s large scale high-rise apartment projects began transforming each end of Deep Ellum, and now mid-rise and high-rise apartments are starting to develop towards the center of the district. As the district continues to be successful there will be more pressure on the historic one and two-story buildings to be demolished for large scale development projects. There is nothing to stop a developer from coming in and purchasing large swaths of commercial blocks on Main, Elm, Commerce and Canton Streets for out of scale mid- to high-rise development, thereby erasing an essential segment of Dallas’ black history. Preservation of this district should be of paramount importance to ensure all Dallas citizens can witness and celebrate their ties to the development of our city.

DISD SCHOOLS IN 2020 BOND (Citywide)

Schools in the Dallas Independent School District were placed on the Endangered list in 2015 as several were threatened with replacement. In 2018, that threat intensified with the release of a Strategic Facilities Plan calling for the demolition and replacement of seventeen schools, with decisions to be made on an additional six. DISD is currently finalizing that plan with a $3.7 billion Bond to go to voters for approval in November. The plan calls for the demolition and replacement of 14 schools including: John Q. Adams, William Hawley Atwell, Dallas Environmental Science Academy, Everette L. DeGolyer, Geneva Heights, Lenore Kirk Hall, Victor H. Hexter, Edwin J. Kiest, Longfellow Career Exploratory, Herbert Marcus, George Peabody, Elisha M. Pease, Martha Turner Reilly and Urban Park. All of which are historic dating from the 1930s to the 1960s with many designed by noted local architects such as George Dahl, Mark Lemmon, and Lang & Witchell. The schools were chosen based on the number of identified building deficiencies and due to inadequately sized spaces for current enrollment.

Historic schools are extremely important as they are landmarks that contribute to the sense of place in our neighborhoods. They were built to last with substantial materials and a high level of craftsmanship and unique design. Preservation Dallas encourages DISD to thoroughly explore the rehabilitation of the existing schools instead of demolition. Other solutions include removal of unsuitable additions and the rehabilitation of the original core structures while adding new spaces. A blend of old and new would celebrate the importance of physical examples of civic history while teaching children that we don’t need to be a disposable and wasteful society by tearing down something useful. Historic schools are too important to lose and every opportunity should be afforded for their continued use and preservation.

EL FENIX – 120 East Colorado Boulevard (Oak Cliff)

In 1918, Miguel Martinez Sr. opened the first El Fenix restaurant in Dallas. Martinez moved from Nuevo Leon, Mexico to Dallas in 1911 and was a railroad worker and dishwasher at the Orient Hotel. The restaurant started out in a one-room location at McKinney and Griffin. After five years, the restaurant moved into a bigger location at 1608 McKinney and became a family business with every member working there.

In 1948, El Fenix opened its second restaurant in Oak Cliff on Colorado Boulevard. Another one quickly followed the same year opening on Lovers Lane. Over the years more opened around Dallas and as far away as Oklahoma City. The Martinez Family sold the El Fenix chain in 2008 to Firebird Restaurant Group.

The restaurant in Oak Cliff was designed in the Spanish Revival style with Mexican décor and in 1952 expanded with the addition of the Fiesta Room. The new room served Oak Cliff for meetings, events, receptions, and restaurant overflow. The legendary Oak Cliff singer Ray Wylie Hubbard had his very first performance there while he was still a student at Adamson High School.

The site where the restaurant is located is in the process of being sold to a developer that aims to demolish the building for the redevelopment the site with a large scale apartment complex. To do so would wipe away an important part of Mexican American and culinary history in Dallas, and erase this manifestation of the American Dream that has served its community for over 70 years. Every means should be explored to incorporate this important Oak Cliff landmark into the new development.

LONGHORN BALLROOM – 216 Corinth Street (Riverfront)

The legendary Longhorn Ballroom opened in 1950 originally as the Bob Wills’ Ranch House. It was owned and operated by O. L. Nelms as a music venue for Bob Wills and his Texas Playboys. The Ranch House included a dance floor accommodating 2,000 people, a barbeque restaurant, a bar, retail and outdoor areas. Bob Wills, as host, played there with the Texas Playboys on a regular basis. They were instrumental in developing a new take on Western Swing music.

Douglas ‘Dewey’ Groom was brought in to manage the club, and in 1968 he purchased the building, renamed it the Longhorn Ballroom, and added the Western style front façade and the iconic sign and bull at Corinth Street. Groom continued Nelms’ commitment to county music, and built it into one of the greatest Country and Western venues of its day. The artists that played there represented the best – Loretta Lynn, Merle Haggard, Conway Twitty, George Jones, Ray Price, Charley Pride, George Jones, Tammy Wynette and Willie Nelson, as well as locals including Hank Thompson and the Brazos Valley Boys. Groom would also lease the venue to other promoters for Jazz, Blues, and Rhythm & Blues with performers such as B. B. King, Lionel Hampton, Nat King Cole, Al Green, Otis Redding, Ray Charles, and James Brown. By the late 1970s, the venue opened up to other popular music, including the Sex Pistols’ notorious event in 1978 that gained worldwide attention.

Groom sold the ballroom in 1986 to Ira Zack who widened the spectrum of music played there bringing in George Thorogood and the Destroyers, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Georgia Satellites, and more. Aerosmith even filmed a music video in the ballroom in 1989 for “What it Takes.” Ten years later, Raul Ramirez purchased the property and had several retail uses and occasional concerts, including Selina. In 2017, Jay LaFrance purchased the building, renovated the exterior and made upgrades to the interior for events, in the process winning an award for the work from Preservation Dallas. Due to bankruptcy, the building is set to be liquidated, through the court. The building is not protected by landmark status and anyone who purchases it could demolish this incredible piece of Dallas’ musical history.

MRS. BAIRD’S BREAD COMPANY BUILDING – 1401 North Carroll Avenue (East Dallas)

Mrs. Baird’s Bread came to Dallas in 1928-1929, constructing the firm’s first bakery outside of Fort Worth at the corner of Bryan Street and North Carroll Avenue. It was an ideal location, close enough to the railroads that delivered the basic ingredients as well as to the growing population of East Dallas where a ready work force resided.

Roland W. Baird, son of the bakery founder, announced in February 1928 that designs for the $250,000 plant would be drawn by a New York firm that specialized in bakeries. The two-story solid brick commercial building that was built featured distinctive Prairie School detailing and produced 3,500 loaves of bread per hour.

Demand grew, and a $12,000 addition designed by Bertram C. Hill was placed in 1934 on the side and back of the structure, expanding the cooling, wrapping, and loading areas. Population growth after World War II outstripped production capacity, so Mrs. Baird’s built a new facility on North Central Expressway which opened in 1954 and has since been demolished. The historic building was sold in 1956 and housed a book cover manufacturing facility and a fabric company. The Mrs. Baird’s building was listed on the National Register in 1995, so it is eligible for both state and national preservation tax credits.

The 1919 and 1937 Mrs. Baird’s Bakeries in Fort Worth have also been demolished, leaving this as the earliest Mrs. Baird’s building in the Metroplex. The handsome bones of this solidly-built structure await re-development, but the current high asking price and lack of landmark protections for the site could forever banish memories of the smell of freshly-baked bread on this corner.

HISTORIC FEATURES OF REVERCHON PARK – 3505 Maple – (Oak Lawn)

Reverchon Park is one of Dallas’s oldest and most historic parks. Conceived as the southern terminus to the Turtle Creek Parkway, the first 36 acres of the park were purchased in 1914 by the City of Dallas and was originally named Turtle Creek Park. In 1915, it was renamed for noted French botanist and La Reunion colonist Julien Reverchon.

The heart of the park is organized around meandering paths, a large play area, and groves of oaks and pecans. This area is nestled between two wooded hills on which the Works Progress Administration (WPA) created extensive stonework between 1935 and 1937. The focal point is the Hillside Terrace, a network of stone stairwells, bridges, pathways, lookouts, and seating spaces that cling to the park’s bluff. In 1946, the park expanded to 46 acres with new land in the southeast corner.

Community baseball games were played in Reverchon Park as early as 1921, with the current field and bleachers believed to date to 1924. Earlier this year the City Dallas approved an agreement with a developer to build a new baseball field and stands on the site of the current ballfield and for it to also serve as an entertainment venue. If the new venue is successful it could increase pressure to allow additional development of the park which could jeopardize its important historic features. Those features are currently in the process of being reviewed for the initiation of the Landmark Designation process and it is hoped that City of Dallas Landmark Designation will be approved to protect those features in perpetuity.

Above photos by Michael Cagle except for DISD which are by Michael Cagle and Preservation Dallas.

The past lists of the Most Endangered Historic Places in Dallas include:

2018 Most Endangered Historic Places

CASA LINDA PLAZA – Garland Road and North Buckner Boulevard (East Dallas)

The Spanish Revival Style Casa Linda Plaza opened in 1945 built on land owned by the Brown family since 1937. The family purchased over 600 acres which they went on to develop as Casa Linda Estates for housing and Casa Linda Plaza for a commercial center to serve the growing residential area. Howard D. Brown was so enamored with the architecture of San Antonio after visiting the city that he wanted the shopping center to reflect that Spanish Revival feel and hired architects Sidney Milan and Jon Roper to make that happen. They created a unique shopping experience with the architecture featuring bell towers, brick detailing, balconies, clay tile roofs, decorative iron work, and carved wood brackets and eave supports. Spanish names were also used for the meandering streets surrounding the Plaza and all named a “Drive” to impart a sense of tranquility for the area Brown was developing.

The early tenants of the shopping center included Tom Thumb, Skillern’s Drugs, C & S Hardware, Zenith Televisions, Parisian-Peyton’s and plenty of restaurants including El Fenix, Wyatt’s Cafeteria, Southern Maid Donuts, and more. The center also included the Casa Linda Theatre with a brightly colored neon tower over the marque. The building is still there although instead of movies being shown inside it is now a grocery store. Generations of Dallasites have grown up in and around the Casa Linda area since it was built. It also has been featured in books, films, and even the animated show King of the Hill.

The Plaza was privately held for more than 30 years by the Brown family until Howard Brown’s worsening health necessitated its sale. Since then the property has changed hands numerous times and has suffered from alterations and partial demolition for new retail space. The current owners purchased the property in 2015 and have been continuing to make changes including the removal of numerous 70 plus year-old trees. The nearby community was dismayed by the tree removal and is scared that more changes are yet to come to the Plaza in an effort to “modernize” the center. The owners of Casa Linda Plaza have a gem with the historic design and should work to preserve that character which makes it a unique place to shop and dine among the numerous generic shopping centers in Dallas.

COLE MANOR MOTEL – 7002 Harry Hines Boulevard (Medical District)

Cole Manor Motel opened in 1946 as the El Sombrero Motor Courts on 1.66 acres as a motor hotel along Harry Hines Boulevard. The design of the motel is attributed to the prolific architect Charles Stevens Dilbeck, who designed many other similar motels along with houses of all sizes around Dallas. As typically of the period the motel was designed with rooms surrounding the edge of the property in a U-shape and facing inward to a “motor court” where guests would drive into and park their cars in a garage next to their rooms, a popular concept for the time and motoring traveler. In the center of the motor court was a pool and a two-story block of guest rooms built at the rear of the site. The motel design is reminiscent of Dilbeck’s rambling Ranch style architecture with asymmetrical facades of brick with varying roof lines and quirky details mixed in like dovecotes, diamond and octagonal shaped windows, and decorative lattice brickwork. Over time the motel has been modified as the former garages have been filled in for rooms and the drive-through entrance roof removed.

The property still operates as a motel; however, the years of use have taken a toll on the building with the transient nature of its clientele. Due to the proximity to the Medical and Design Districts and the revitalized area along Inwood Road near Love Field, additional pressure will come to redevelop the area and smaller older properties on big sites, like the motel, will be ripe for redevelopment. Cole Manor is also at a busy and highly visible intersection making it more desirable for redevelopment. There are few motels left in Dallas from the 1940s with such a quirky and interesting design and all the more important with being attributed to a prolific and unique Dallas architect.

DISD SCHOOLS – Citywide

Schools in the Dallas Independent School District were placed on the Endangered Places list in 2015 in regards to a few which were threatened with replacement due to the passage of a 2015 school bond. Several years later that threat has intensified as the administration just released a Strategic Facilities Plan calling for the demolition and replacement of seventeen schools with decisions to be made about the fate of an additional six. The schools were selected for the list based on age, facility condition, and enrollment.

The plan is an effort to reduce the average of schools in Dallas from 51.7 years to 46 years to get more in line with the national average of 44 years. The majority of the schools proposed for demolition are historic and range in style from revivalist to mid-century, with many designed by significant Dallas architects, including Mark Lemmon and C.D. Hill. Schools proposed for replacement include: Hawthorne, Peabody, Hall, Rhoads, Thompson, Kiest, Geneva Heights, DeGolyer, Hexter, Reilly, Walnut Hill, Urban Park, Pease, Atwell, John Q Adams, Longfellow, Marcus, and DESA. Schools where a decision will need to be made include Field, Hogg, Peeler, Twain, Miller, and Milam. They are scattered all over the city and date from 1915 to the 1960s. The massive plan would require voters to pass a $2 billion bond in 2021 to make the project happen.

Historic schools are extremely important to the sense of place in neighborhoods across Dallas and are landmarks within each respective community. They were built to last and constructed of substantial materials with a high level of craftsmanship and unique design. We encourage DISD to thoroughly explore the rehabilitation of the existing school or the incorporation of the structures into new designs that will meet the needs of the district. There are many options which would both value the original buildings, many designed by prominent Dallas architects, such as targeted demolition of ancillary additions and the rehabilitation of the original core structures while adding new spaces to accommodate the needs of larger schools. A great example of that is the Booker T. Washington School in downtown for which the historic school was restored and a new modern addition added to the rear. A blend of old and new buildings would celebrate the importance of physical examples of civic history while educating children and teaching them that we don’t need to be a disposable and wasteful society by tearing down something useful and carting it off to the landfill when it can be repurposed. Historic schools are too important to be lost and every opportunity should be afforded by DISD for their continued use and preservation.

UPDATE: DISD has used the Strategic Facilities Plan to select which schools are to be demolished as part of the 2020 Bond Program. See the 2020 listing above for more information on which schools were chosen to be demolished and replaced.

HYER ELEMENTARY – 3920 Caruth Boulevard (Highland Park)

In 2015, the Highland Park ISD passed a bond for the replacement of three significant historic schools, Bradfield Elementary School – 4300 Southern Avenue (Highland Park), University Park Elementary School – 3505 Amherst Avenue (University Park), and Hyer Elementary School – 3920 Caruth Boulevard (Highland Park). The three schools were deemed inadequate to meet the needs of the growing school-aged population of the Park Cities and were targeted for much larger schools out of character for the neighborhoods they were located in.

Both the 1925 Bradfield Elementary School and the 1928 University Park Elementary School were designed by the architectural firm of Lang & Witchell and have been demolished to make way for new massive schools on the same site. Both brick schools featured similar plans and were designed in the Spanish Revival style with added Rococo detailing such as monumental main entrances with elaborate curves, scrolls, shells, and shields adorned with fleurs-de-lis.

Hyer Elementary School, which opened in 1949, is last remaining of the three and an excellent example of Mark Lemmon’s historicist architecture styled in the Georgian Revival aesthetic. The main entrance features a classically-inspired pediment, supported by original cast iron columns with lace detailing. The façades feature decorative hexagonal windows and nine-over-nine double-hung windows with prominent central keystones in the decorative brick headers. The school is scheduled for demolition in the summer of 2019 to be replaced with a much more massive school out of scale for the neighborhood as was done at the Bradfield and University Park sites.

UPDATE: The school was demolished in the summer of 2019 for the construction of a new larger school on the same site.

PIKE PARK RECREATIONAL CENTER – 2807 Harry Hines Boulevard (Little Mexico/Uptown)

The City of Dallas purchased land to establish the first park north of downtown in 1913. The area chosen for the park was first settled by Jewish immigrants in the late 1800s who had left Eastern Europe. During this period the neighborhood was known as Goose Valley, Frogtown or Little Jerusalem. Living conditions were grim, but housing was inexpensive in an area of unpaved streets subject to frequent flooding. The park was formerly dedicated in 1915 and named Summit Play Park and included wading pools, tennis courts, and a baseball field. Dallas architectural firm Lang & Witchell designed a two-story field house for the park in the Mission Revival style with assembly rooms, baths, showers, a reading room, and a milk depot. The park quickly became a gathering place for Jewish immigrants. In 1927, the park was renamed Pike Park in honor of Edgar L. Pike, who served on the Dallas Park and Recreation Board from 1908-1919.

As Little Jerusalem flourished, prospering middle class Jewish families began to relocate to larger homes in other areas of Dallas. Concurrently, Mexican migrants (commonly referred to as colonists) began moving to the area surrounding Pike Park to escape the turmoil of the Mexican revolution. The neighborhood then became known as Little Mexico with the park becoming a central spot for celebrations of Mexican and American holidays.

In 1950, the upper floor of the field house was removed and the remaining building converted into club and recreation rooms. In 1956, the Dallas City Council approved federal funding for urban renewal in Little Mexico which included renovations to the recreation center, a lighted baseball field and expanded play areas. However, the renewal project also signaled the destruction of the vibrant historic neighborhood with the construction of the Dallas North Tollway in the late 1960s. The toll road sliced Little Mexico in half and impeded neighborhood access to Pike Park which caused user ship to decline. City officials considered closing it, but Anita N. Martinez, the first Mexican American elected to the Dallas City Council in 1969, made the survival and rehabilitation of Pike Park one of her first initiatives. Martinez regarded the park as, “the psychological heart of the Mexican American community in Dallas.” In 1978, the city renovated the building to its current form with an arcade of arched openings and a central Mission style parapet, and a red-tile roof. The swimming pool which had been in front of the building was removed and replaced by a brick plaza and a gazebo.

Today, the park grounds are maintained and used; however, the recreation center has been closed for years due to environmental and other non-code compliant issues. The Dallas Mexican American Historical League (DMAHL) has been working with the Dallas Park and Recreation Department to find a way to reopen the recreation center as a vital part of the history of the park and the surrounding community. Funding is the issue to make that happen and is needed before the building gets to the point where it is no longer feasible to be rehabilitated. The once vibrant community center sits silently, unused and overlooked waiting to be returned to its former glory.

TENNESSEE DAIRY WALL – Oak Cliff

A 640-acre dairy farm was established in Oak cliff in 1907 by Tennessean Lindsley Waters. He named it Tennessee Dairies, Inc. and even won “most sanitary dairy farm” at the 1908 State Fair. It was only the second local retail distributor of milk to deliver pasteurized milk in glass bottles. By 1917, the farm had 2,000 cows which supplied fresh milk to Dallas, Highland Park and Mount Auburn using twenty-six trucks and wagons. After a fire broke out in 1919, Waters relocated the operation to Crowdus Street near present-day Deep Ellum and sold the acreage to a real estate developer, Frank G. Jester, who in 1924 developed the residential addition of Elmwood. Tennessee Dairies merged with Foremost Dairies, Inc., in 1952.

Along South Edgefield Avenue between Elmhurst Place and Balboa Drive a small remnant of the stone perimeter fence from the dairy farm survives. The northern portion of the wall which protected part of the large farm is remarkably intact while the southern portion has been reduced to just a few inches. A middle portion is missing entirely, likely due to residential construction and exposure to the elements over the years. The wall crosses the western edge of seven residential properties.

While part of the dairy farm wall has survived for more than 110 years, another section is in danger of disappearing and a middle section has been removed entirely. Some property owners would like to see the wall stay while others are indifferent and some may not have the means to preserve the wall. The Elmwood Neighborhood Association is supportive of the wall staying and looking for ways to help property owners preserve it. The Elmwood Parkway, a greenbelt that is part of the Dallas park system is nearby and a historic marker or interpretive sign could help people understand more about this fascinating part of Oak Cliff’s early history.

TENTH STREET HISTORIC DISTRICT – Oak Cliff

The Tenth Street Historic District, located on the southeastern edge of Oak Cliff, is one of the most important African American neighborhoods in Dallas. It developed around an established African American community dating back to the post-Civil War era when freed slaves settled there. The district contains mostly late nineteenth and early twentieth century structures of simple wood frame vernacular or folk style houses with a few Craftsman and Queen Anne style houses. A handful of commercial and institutional buildings also still exist from a time when the neighborhood was largely independent from the rest of Oak Cliff, and even Dallas, due to segregation.

Following World War II, much of Oak Cliff experienced a period of decline as many families moved to the outer-lying suburbs. At the time many new highways were constructed, including Highway 35E which physically cut Tenth Street off from the rest of Oak Cliff. Over time the neighborhood continued to decline as families moved to other areas and homes were left to renters or became vacant. Recognizing the neighborhood as the only African American community from the late nineteenth century, the City of Dallas designated the Tenth Street neighborhood a Historic District in 1993 as a means to try and stabilize the neighborhood. The following year, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its importance to Dallas.

Over the past few years the district has suffered from numerous court ordered demolitions of deteriorated and neglected vacant houses in an effort to “clean up” the neighborhood. If the demolitions continue unchecked, it could lead to the demise of historic status for the neighborhood. In addition, as the new deck park is built there could be additional pressure to redevelop the neighborhood with inappropriate new construction. The neighborhood residents have recently formed a new neighborhood group that has been active in attending Landmark Commission meetings and opposing demolitions in the district, but with a court order the Landmark Commission is powerless to stop the demolitions.

UPDATE: The house pictured above was demolished in early 2019. In May of 2019, Tenth Street was placed on the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places in the country due to the demolitions. To find out more about that click here. In August of 2019, the Dallas City Council passed a resolution preventing city resources from demolishing houses in the district, unless the fire marshal declares the house a clear and present danger.

TIMBERLAWN – 4600 Samuell Boulevard (Far East Dallas)

Dr. James J. Terrill founded the Timberlawn Sanitarium in 1917 outside of the Dallas city limits on “eleven acres of orchard, garden and grove land” as described at the time by The Dallas Morning News. The spacious grounds were thought to facilitate patient improvement from psychiatric conditions. Included on the site was a large two-story neo-classical style house with an attic which was converted into the sanitarium according to the newspaper.

At first, Timberlawn operated completely out of the former house, with Dr. Terrill and his family living on the first floor and rooms for up to fifteen patients on the upper two floors. By 1925, the facility had expanded to fifty beds with the conversion of the original building into the Women’s Building, and new structures erected for a physician’s residence, a Men’s Building, and a cottage for patients. The 1960s marked the beginning of another expansion period with the 1959 formation of the Timberlawn Foundation for Education and Research in Psychiatry. An activities building and a new patient wing were added in 1962, followed by a research building in 1967 with a library, biochemical and behavioral laboratories, and administrative offices. By 1986, the facility’s capacity expanded to over 220 with more housing added.

For many years, Timberlawn was a highly regarded facility for care and research, and added locations outside its Dallas facility. The system came under scrutiny in the late 2000s with allegations of inadequate staffing and poor care. With the escalating problems and pending regulation compliance the facility was closed in February of 2018. The fate of the site is unclear as it could be sold and the buildings torn down for new development erasing the history of the site and its role in caring for psychiatric patients since the early 1900s.

UPDATE: The buildings on the Timberlawn site were demolished in 2019.

Above photos by Michael Cagle

2017 Most Endangered Historic Places

THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS BUILDING – 508 Young Street (Downtown)

The Dallas Morning News Building at the corner of Houston and Young Streets opened in 1949. It is affectionately known as the “Rock of Truth” building due to the inscription on the building’s front façade, which was taken from a 1906 address to employees by vice president and general manager of the corporation at the time, George Dealey. The Dallas Morning News began publication on October 1, 1885 in conjunction with the pre-existing Galveston News. These two newspapers were the first in the country to publish simultaneous editions thanks to being linked by 315 miles of telegraph lines. George Dealey began working for Galveston News as an office boy in 1874 at the age of 15, and worked his way up the corporate ladder until he bought the Dallas Morning News in 1926.

George Dahl, one of Dallas most prolific and preeminent architects, designed the original front portion of the building which has been added on to over the years in different phases. The interior also went through an extensive remodel in the 1960s removing original Dahl features and a lobby mural painted by Perry Nichols chronicling the history of Texas and The Dallas Morning News. The mural was sent to the University of Texas after removal and then came back to the TXCN building on The News campus in the 1980s where it was installed and stayed until 2017 when it was removed and sent back to the University of Texas. The rear section of The News building was devoted to the three-story tall printing presses which were shuttered when the printing of the paper moved to a facility in Plano in the 1980s leaving a large expanse of the building vacant. The exterior of the of the building remains largely intact with its most identifiable feature the “Rock of Truth” inscription and its metal spandrels between the windows featuring the outline of Texas.

The Dallas Morning News has relocated to another George Dahl designed building – the old Central Public Library on Commerce Street next to The Statler – leaving the 1949 building vacant. Earlier this year The Dallas Morning News hired architecture firm GFF to study the feasibility of the reuse of the building. Hopefully the value of the important history of the building will be recognized and its architecture by George Dahl preserved, even if it’s only the front portion of the building. If the building goes up for sale it could be demolished by its next owner for new development on the site, which would leave Dallas without a physical connection to this important piece of our city’s history.

UPDATE: The building has been sold with the new owner looking to convert it into a boutique hotel.

FIRST CHURCH OF CHRIST, SCIENTIST (EAGLE’S NEST) – 1508 Cadiz St (Downtown)

Christian Scientists first established a congregation in Dallas in 1894, meeting in a series of downtown buildings. The congregation sold its wood-frame building on South Ervay Street near Marilla Street in 1910 to construct their new church on a recently purchased parcel of land at the corner of Browder and Cadiz in Browder’s Addition. The neo-Classical Revival style church was designed by the well-known firm of Hubbell and Greene, who also designed the Scottish Rite Temple on Harwood Street. The design was intended to reflect the mother church in Boston with its impressive dome on the roof and its Adamesque interior design. Construction work began with the cornerstone being laid on August 27, 1910. The first service in the new 900-seat church was held on January 14, 1912.

First Church of Christ, Scientist occupied the building into the 1980s. By that time the area around it had become deteriorated and members moved to other Christian Science congregations. The building was purchased in 1999 and the new owner completed a renovation of the dilapidated structure which included a new roof, restoration of the metal dome, repair of the exterior masonry, and restoration of the interior along with installing dressing rooms, restrooms, and box office into the original structure. The structure reopened in 2000 as a performing arts center.

The building is currently for sale and the surrounding area south of City Hall has been proposed for massive redevelopment with new towers and buildings which does not include retaining the church. This important religious structure is not protected by the Dallas Landmark status, putting it at increased risk for demolition as part of future redevelopment of the area.

UPDATE: The building has sold to church who is holding services in the building once again.

FLORENCE HALL AND THE HERITAGE BUILDINGS OF SMU – SMU Main Campus

The Southern Methodist University main campus was carefully planned in 1911 by its founding president Robert S. Hyer who desired to create a campus that was planned for the future and would not necessitate the removal of buildings as the campus expanded. He created Bishop Boulevard as a grand avenue from Mockingbird Lane to lead to the pinnacle of campus, Dallas Hall, which was completed in 1915.

Between 1915 and 1928 a group of ten structures were built in the Georgian Revival style as the earliest buildings constructed on campus. They were placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 due to the significance of the extensively planned campus using the Georgian Revival style popular at the time. The structures listed on National Register include: Dallas Hall, Clements Hall, Florence Hall, McFarlin Auditorium, Hyer Hall, Perkins Hall, Ownby Stadium (demolished), Snider Hall, Virginia Hall, and Patterson Hall. All relate to one another with their placement on campus and their Georgian Revival style with uniform scale and height, well-proportioned symmetrical compositions, red brick with white trim, multi-paned windows, and decorative Georgian motifs and elements applied in wood and cast stone.

Over time the campus grew in phases following the original campus plan for buildings and for the most part carried forward the design principals of the early buildings. As a university that is continuing to grow there is increased pressure on the older heritage buildings for replacement with larger and more up-to-date facilities for the students. An example of the threat those buildings face is Florence Hall, which is being considered for replacement. It was constructed in 1924 to serve as the home of the SMU School of Theology and was originally named Kirby Hall. It was renamed Florence Hall in 1951 when it was converted to serve the School of Law, which has plans to replace the building with a new larger facility once funds are raised. The demolition of one of the earliest campus buildings would be a terrible loss. SMU has done an excellent job of renovating Dallas Hall and McFarlin Auditorium and we hope that they could do the same with Florence Hall.

MILLER-STEMMONS NATIONAL REGISTER HISTORIC DISTRICT – Oak Cliff

The Miller-Stemmons National Register of Historic Places Historic District is located in the heart of Oak Cliff and is one of the oldest neighborhoods in that area. After the annexation of the City of Oak Cliff in 1903 by the City of Dallas, Leslie A. Stemmons and Thomas S. Miller, Jr. developed what became the Miller Stemmons Addition of more than 200 buildings. The development consisted primarily of one and two-story single-family residential buildings dating from 1910 to the late 1930s with 1920s multi-family apartment buildings mixed in. The buildings are primarily wood frame or brick and reflect the popular styles of the day, including many bungalows and four-square designs.

The development is roughly bounded by West Davis Street on the south, Neches Street on the north, Elsbeth Street on the east and Woodlawn Avenue on the west. It was originally promoted as an affluent neighborhood with more substantial houses constructed on Bishop Avenue, which was particularly popular due to its proximity to the streetcar line. The south end of Bishop Avenue was anchored by a brick fire station. Prominent doctors, lawyers, and business leaders built many of the houses in the district.

As the Bishop Arts District has grown in popularity it has brought increased development pressure for the close by Miller-Stemmons District. Even though it has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1994 it is not afforded the protection of being a City of Dallas Landmark District. In 2010, Bishop and Davis were heavily up zoned for more intensive development. A maximum height of 38 feet (or 3 stories plus an attic) is now allowed along Bishop Avenue, with mixed-use buildings being allowed to go higher. Above ground parking structures are also allowed along with remote parking lots. The historic structures are typically on 50-foot-wide lots; however, lots may now be combined to 150-foot-wide lots encouraging larger scale development and new out of place 3 ½ story buildings. Some new construction has been compatible while some has not. Several new buildings on Bishop have been constructed with a reduced front yard setback and a much larger scale than the historic homes surrounding it which disrupts the rhythm of the historic block-face.

New large scale development is being constructed along Davis Street and Zang Boulevard which will only increase pressure on the Miller-Stemmons neighborhood with developers wanting to replace historic houses with denser development on the lots. Recent demolitions have occurred on Elsbeth Street, Madison Avenue and Bishop Avenue and there will undoubtedly be more in the future as developers look for opportunities.

Unfortunately, the character of the Miller-Stemmons District is changing with more intensive zoning and encroaching development. That pressure will only put the historic nature of the neighborhood at increased risk. The only way to protect the neighborhood’s character is to establish a City of Dallas Historic District or Conservation District.

NATIONAL REGISTER PROPERTIES SURROUNDING LAKE CLIFF PARK – Oak Cliff

Lake Cliff Park and the immediate area surrounding it in Oak Cliff became a National Register of Historic Places Historic District in 1994 due to its significance with the development of the Oak Cliff community and the architecture of the neighborhood, primarily from the 1920s to 1930s. In 1997, the area was designated a Dallas Landmark District; however, significant historic residences at the entrances to the district on Blaylock Avenue and N. Crawford Street were left out of the district despite being listed as contributing historic structures in the National Register Historic District.

The Lake Cliff National Register Historic District covers approximately 75 acres including Lake Cliff Park, which features a man-made lake created around 1888. Properties in the district include a mix of frame and masonry one and two-story houses featuring Craftsman and Prairie School influences along with small compatible apartment buildings. The district includes the residential half-blocks fronting the park including Blaylock Drive, E. 5th Street, N. Crawford Street and the 13-story Lake Cliff Tower north of Colorado Boulevard. The Dallas Landmark District includes that area along with N. Marsalis Avenue and E. 6th Street, but not 826, 832, and 834 Blaylock Drive along with 1103, 1109, and 1119 N. Crawford Street. All of which are included in the National Register Historic District.

Due to interest in the area and recently increased zoning allowances it puts at risk the National Register listed historic buildings facing Lake Cliff Park as much larger multi-family units can be built on the sites since they are not part of the Dallas Landmark District. This threat is evidenced by a demolition permit recently issued by the City of Dallas for 834 Blaylock so that it may be razed for a larger multi-family structure. The two-story, brick-veneer building originally contained four apartments and was constructed in 1922.

In October, the Dallas Landmark Commission initiated the Landmark Designation process to expand the City of Dallas Lake Cliff Historic District to include those six properties facing the park and five others on Marsalis Avenue. The demolition permit issued for the structure at 834 Blaylock cannot be rescinded by the City of Dallas; however, there is still a chance for the others to be protected if the expansion of the Lake Cliff Landmark District is approved by the city. The district expansion is supported by both the Lake Cliff Neighborhood Association and Preservation Dallas as a way to protect the historic character of this important historic district in Oak Cliff.

UPDATE: The Landmark Commission initiated the Landmark Designation Process for the expansion of the Lake Cliff Historic District to include the properties on the National Register of Historic Places last year. However, the owners of those properties appealed the decision to the City Council and in early 2018 the Council overturned the decision of the Landmark Commission to initiate the designation process.

VAUGHN HOUSE – 5350 South Dentwood Drive (Preston Hollow)

In 1951, when Dallas was still learning to embrace the new modern design movement (now called Mid-Century Modern), oilman Grady Vaughn commissioned architect Robert Goodwin, of Goodwin & Cavitt, to design his waterfront home on South Dentwood Drive in Preston Hollow. The sprawling 9,500 square foot home was designed to serpentine throughout the property, meandering alongside a pond in the Straight Branch tributary, and around existing trees.

The new modern architecture of the 1950s was noteworthy for open floor plans, introduced through post and beam construction, and inviting the outdoors inside. The Vaughn House embraces those characteristics with an open first floor and exterior walls of glass overlooking the water. Modern touches were used, such as terrazzo floors, an open staircase, recessed and cove lighting, simplified hardware (including bullet hinges), streamlined fireplace surrounds, and more.

The roman brick exterior seamlessly incorporates planters, privacy courtyards, retaining walls, an outdoor kitchenette and even a small boat dock. Deep overhangs with soffits of pecky Cypress shades the large casement windows and the house from the sun. The site also features a swimming pool overlooking the creek.

The house has been owned by only two families and the estate of the second owner plans to auction it in February at a price which could encourage the house to be razed. The Vaughn House is truly a Mid-Century Modern masterpiece in Dallas and one that hopefully will not meet the fate of a wrecking ball.

UPDATE: The house did not sell at auction and is currently still for sale.

Above photos by Michael Cagle except for the Vaughn House which is by Steve Clicque.

2016 Most Endangered Historic Places

HISTORIC BUILDINGS ALONG THE PROPOSED DART D2 LINE – Downtown and Deep Ellum

DART is proposing a second rail line through downtown Dallas which will impact numerous historic buildings along the proposed route and its design options. The locally preferred alternative for the line is proposed to go through the Downtown Dallas National Register of Historic Places Historic District, the City of Dallas Harwood Historic District, and the West End National Register of Historic Places Historic District. Historic properties like the Aloft Hotel, SoCo Lofts, Lone Star Gas Lofts, Statler Hilton, Continental Building, First Presbyterian Church, Scottish Rite Temple, Knights of Pythias building, and more will all be impacted. The line will also impact Deep Ellum further cutting it off from the rest of downtown.

Over $350 million in redevelopment of historic properties would be impacted by noise and vibrations from construction and running trains, removal of access to buildings for services and garages, and even potential demolition of portions of historic structures. This kind of impact to historic properties is too great for the amazing amount of work that has been done to revitalize them and downtown Dallas. We believe that mass transit benefits the city and the expansion of the DART system to make it more flexible is good for the city’s future. However, in order to create that flexibility the new line should be buried in a subway so that the historic buildings along the line can continue with their full use and access to keep them viable for the future and part of the renaissance of the urban core.

UPDATE: DART has agreed to bury the D2 line underground in a subway system. The final locations for the portals to the underground tunnels and the station locations are being selected and engineered. Public meetings have been occurring since 2017 to look to at various options for the subway line and portal locations. More information on the D2 line can be found here.

ELBOW ROOM – 3010 Gaston Avenue (Baylor District)

This simple, elegant, workhorse of a brick building was constructed about 1933 and first housed Royal Cleaners. It was gone within a year, followed by the California Flower Shop. Businesses came and left the small 1,824 square foot building every few years, and at times stood vacant. Berta’s Café opened there about 1940, and it proved to be a stable neighborhood institution, occupying the space until about 1957. After the café closed, other short-lived restaurants followed, including Mozelle’s and Grill Thirty-Ten. Around 1964, the little brick building became home to the Thirty-Ten Lounge, drawing its name from both the address and the café. It was followed in 1968 by Cabaret Lounge and in 1998 by the Elbow Room.

The Elbow Room is one of the last remaining historic commercial buildings on that block of Gaston and is threatened with being purchased or acquired by eminent domain by the Texas A&M University System. They would like to demolish the building to build a new clinical education building on the lot for its dental school.

UPDATE: The building was demolished in the fall of 2017 for the construction of the new dental school building for Texas A&M.

HISTORIC BUILDINGS AT FAIR PARK – South Dallas

Fair Park is one of Dallas’ most important and beloved historic sites. From its beginnings in 1886 it has grown in size and importance becoming home to the annual Texas State Fair, the 1936 Texas Centennial Exposition, and the 1937 Pan American Exposition. In 1904, Fair Park became part of the Dallas Public Park system. The buildings and landscape of Fair Park were redesigned for the Texas Centennial in 1936 by a group of talented architects and designers led by Dallas architect George Dahl. It is now the nation’s largest collection of Art Deco exposition architecture and public art. The significance of Fair Park is so important that it was granted National Historic Landmark status in 1986 and is only one of two such sites in Dallas, the other being Dealey Plaza.

Deferred maintenance due to lack of resources has taken its toll on the historic buildings at Fair Park. Roofs are leaking, plumbing and electrical systems need to be updated and the HVAC improved. These items must be addressed in order to make the buildings more viable for use throughout the year. Resources must be put into Fair Park now in order to avoid more costly repairs in the future. The Fair Park Texas Foundation has identified the numerous needs of the buildings and is the organization that can take on the monumental task of saving Fair Park’s all too important historic assets. They have committed to raising $100 million for Fair Park to match bond fund money; however, the city needs to secure the needed bond money in upcoming bond elections.

A properly preserved and maintained Fair Park, with its landscape, buildings, art, and historic spaces can serve the city on many levels. Thoughtful and careful planning, with citywide engagement, will serve to reinvigorate the National Historic Landmark site. A vibrant site with preserved historic structures will help entice development in surrounding neighborhoods and improve civic pride in one of Dallas most important historic sites.

UPDATE: Fair Park was included in the 2017 City of Dallas Bond package which was approved by voters in November of 2017. Fair Park will receive $50 million in bond money to address items deferred maintenance items, accessibility to buildings, and more. Roughly $14 million will be going to the Hall of State for repairs. Three management groups vied for the contract to manage Fair Park and Fair Park First was selected and approved by the Dallas City Council in the fall of 2018. In January of 2019 they took over management of the site. Since then they have been working on an update to the Fair Park Master Plan and plans for the community park which were presented to the Park Board in June of 2020 – Fair Park Master Plan – June Park Board Meeting 6-18-2020 .

PENSON HOUSE – 3756 Armstrong (Highland Park)

The Penson House was designed by O’Neil Ford, and built in 1954 for Jack and Nancy Penson. It is one of Ford’s largest residential projects and was designed in one of his favorite styles, Texas Regionalism. The exterior and interior of the 9,800 square foot home remains very close to the original design with the expectation of a second story addition, a master bath expansion, and enclosure of a rear porch.

The house will be going up for auction and with the impressive lot on a corner, closeness of the Turtle Creek tributary across the street on one corner, and Davis Park directly across the street on the opposite corner makes this lot very valuable. This amazing property paired with a beautiful, large O’Neil Ford house makes for a very unique combination and one that is in jeopardy of being torn down for redevelopment if it doesn’t go to a bidder who appreciates the house, especially as Highland Park does not have any mechanism to protect historic buildings.

UPDATE: The Penson House sold at auction in September of 2016 for $4.9 million and was subsequently demolished. The lot was put on the market for $5.9 million in December of 2016.

POLAR BEAR – 1207 N. Zang Boulevard (Oak Cliff)

The small but unique building with an extraordinarily whimsical façade across from Lake Cliff Park is commonly know as the Polar Bear for its association with its longest tenant the Polar Bear Ice Cream shop, a beloved shop of many. The structure was originally built in the early 1930s and its first two tenants were the U.S. Sandwich Shop and the Schell Grill. In 1946, the Polar Bear Ice Cream shop opened in the building. Most people associate the cool “frosty” design with Polar Bear thinking it was designed to look like a glacier or an igloo, most fitting for an ice cream shop.

The area surrounding the park and the nearby historic Bankhead Highway (which ran down Houston Street to Zang Boulevard) had many such small restaurants including Pig Stand #2, A&W Root Beer Stand, Pig ‘n Whistle Restaurant, and more. All of which were supported by the 1950s teenage car culture. The building has been vacant since 2014 and a wind storm in early 2015 blew down a portion of the unique parapet. The building has been on the Old Oak Cliff Conservation League’s Architecture at Risk list and has been singled out in the newly created PD 830 Gateway ordinance as one of four buildings the city considers a priority for Landmark designation in the ordinance area. The parcel of land the building sits on is zoned for 8-story mixed use and could face pressure from development and increasing land values in Oak Cliff.

UPDATE: The Polar Bear suffered a fire in early 2020 which left a large hole in the roof allowing water to enter the building. In June of 2020 the building partially collapsed and it was deemed a public safety hazard by the City Fire Marshal. Due to that, the City issued a demotion permit for the building and it was demolished in July of 2020.

WILLIAMS HOUSE – 3805 McFarlin (University Park)

The Williams house was designed by architect David R. Williams in 1932 for University Park Mayor Elbert Williams. David R. Williams is considered the father of the Texas Regionalism style and the Williams house is considered the premiere example of the style. The home was Williams’ last residential project of its type and contains all his hallmarks including hand carved interior woodwork by Lynn Ford (O’Neil Ford’s brother), a mural painting by Jerry Bywaters and abundant lone star ornamentation.

The 6,000 square foot Williams House occupies 1.15 acres of University Park property. Having only two owners in its lifetime, the house’s exterior and interiors are remarkably intact with original details and layout. The Williams House appears almost exactly as it did when built. The particular plat of land it sits on is exceptionally valuable because it runs along the Turtle Creek shoreline, as well abutting the Dallas County Club golf course. This house is the most important example of the Texas Regionalism style and with it sitting on such a valuable piece of land and no protections in University Park for historic buildings it could be easily demolished for new construction.

UPDATE: The home is currently on the market for $9,950,000.

Above photos by Michael Cagle except for the Aldredge House which is by Steve Clicque.

2015 Most Endangered Historic Places

ALDREDGE HOUSE – 5500 Swiss Avenue (East Dallas)

Located in the city’s first residential historic district, the Aldredge House is one of architect Hal Thomson’s most important works built in the French Eclectic style with elegant Renaissance detailing. Completed in 1917 for rancher William Lewis and wife Willie Newbury, it quickly passed to local banker George Aldredge and his wife Rena Munger in 1921. It stayed in the family until Rena generously donated it to the Dallas County Medical Society Alliance in 1974 to use as its headquarters. The nonprofit has taken up the mantle of preserving and maintaining Aldredge House, which even includes some of the original furnishings. The house is one of the few properties in Dallas where the historic integrity has not been compromised and in many ways serves as an opportunity for visitors to step back in time. While the house is not threatened with demolition, it is threatened by the removal of its city permission to hold events at the house which allows the public access to one of the most wonderful historic interiors in Dallas and helps the nonprofit generate the funds necessary to maintain this historic gem. If the permission is revoked, the house will most likely have to be sold, closing it to the public and subjecting the highly intact historic interiors to modernization.

UPDATE: An SUP and PD for the Aldredge House was passed by the Dallas City Council in January of 2018 to allow the house to operate as a historic house museum and meeting space with a maximum of 36 evening events per year at the house which must end by 10:00 pm.

BIANCHI HOUSE – 4503 Reiger Avenue (East Dallas)

This distinctive brick Mission Revival Style house was designed by noted Dallas architects Lang & Witchell in 1912 for Italian sculptor Didaco Bianchi and his wife Ida. The stunning interior plasterwork and pilasters, unique to this style, were designed and constructed by Bianchi himself. Significant piers support the massive and intricately carved mantelpiece, while its distinctive “Alamo”-style parapet adorns the front façade. The home received awards and accolades, including “House of the Future” at the 1936 Centennial Exposition, due to its advanced ventilation, plumbing, and electrical systems. It also has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The house remained in the Bianchi family until 1979. Although there are permits issued for work on the house, the work has seemingly stopped and the house continues to deteriorate with the roof now showing visible signs of deterioration.

UPDATE: The Bianchi House was initiated for the City of Dallas Landmark designation process by the Landmark Commission in November of 2016 and is still going through the designation process. The house sold in the summer of 2017 to new owners who are working on renovating the house.

BRINK’S COFFEE SHOP – 4505 Gaston Avenue (East Dallas)

Designed by Paul & Paul Architects in 1964, Brink’s is perhaps the city’s finest remaining example of Modern “Googie” style architecture. The building features two rear-sloping zig-zag slab roofs with walls formed of alternating sections of storefront and rubble stone masonry with sloping ends. This building was the first restaurant constructed for Norman Brinker and his first wife Maureen Connolly, both former US Olympians. The Brinker’s went on to develop successful restaurants including Steak and Ale, Bennigan’s, and Chili’s. Brinker and his wife Nancy were heavily involved in philanthropic efforts and are credited with establishing the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation in honor of Nancy’s sister. The building is now vacant and boarded up. Unless this unique property is renovated and brought back to life, it will continue to deteriorate, or may eventually succumb to redevelopment pressure, leading to the erasing of a part of Dallas’ culinary and architectural history.

UPDATE: The building sold to a new owner in 2016 who has since fixed the exterior of the building and has leased it for a new retaurant.

CABANA HOTEL – 899 Stemmons Freeway (City Center)

Dallas reflects a bit of Las Vegas with the 1962 Cabana Hotel developed by Jay Sarno, who also developed Vegas properties Caesar’s Palace (1966) and Circus Circus (1968). This 10-story, 300-room hotel with its striking decorative concrete screen once welcomed famed guests, including The Beatles, Led Zeppelin, The Who, Jimi Hendrix, Richard Nixon, and Norman Mailer. Raquel Welch was a cocktail waitress here before being discovered. Much of the original features are intact, including extensive tile-work, terrazzo, concrete screen-walls, curved signature walls, and unique concrete umbrellas on the terrace. After the hotel ceased operation it was converted to the Decker Jail, which is now closed. Dallas County is in the process of selling the building to a developer interested in demolishing this once hip, mid-century building tied to the cultural history of Dallas, for a new data center.

UPDATE: The original developer who wanted to demolish the building backed out of the purchase and now the developer who took on The Statler redevelopment is working to return the building back to a hotel.

DALLAS INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT SCHOOLS – City Wide

Historic schools are very important to the sense of place in neighborhoods across Dallas and are landmarks within each respective community. Historic schools in Dallas date form the early 1900s to the 1950s and were often designed by some of the most important architects in Dallas at the time, including Mark Lemmon and C.D. Hill. They were built to last and constructed of substantial materials with a high level of craftsmanship and unique design. Many wonderful historic schools in the DISD inventory have been well preserved such as Woodrow Wilson in East Dallas, Booker T. Washington downtown, and Sunset in Oak Cliff. However, others are languishing or up for replacement in the upcoming bond election. One of those historic schools being considered for replacement is Rosemont Elementary at 719 N. Montclair Avenue in Oak Cliff. Completed in 1922, it has long been an anchor for the neighborhood and the building is still rated as “Good” in DISD’s conditions inventory. Historic schools are too important to be lost due to closure or replacement and every opportunity should be afforded by DISD for their continued use and preservation.

FOREST THEATER – 1914-1920 Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard (South Dallas)

The Forest Theater, with its distinctive neon emblazoned tower floating over the marquee, and the attached shopping center, opened in 1949 to serve the middle-class white patrons in the area. The 1,500 seat theater was part of the Interstate Theatre chain and designed by H. F. Pettigrew of Pettigrew and Worley, who also designed the Lakewood and Circle Theaters. The Forest featured an unusual gently sweeping semi-circular ramp to the mezzanine and murals of tropical birds and flowers. In 1956, the theater changed its patron focus to that of the middle-class African American families moving into the area and became the “Colored” Forest Theater. Due to sagging ticket sales, the theater closed in 1965. Since then it has been used for special events and performances. The theater and block of original commercial spaces are now up for sale and could be demolished to make way for new development, erasing a part of the African American history of the city and taking away one of Dallas’ few remaining historic theaters. Like the Lakewood Theater, the Forest is worthy of designation as a City of Dallas Landmark and should be preserved.

UPDATE: The Forest Theater was initiated for the City of Dallas Landmark designation process by the Landmark Commission in November of 2015 and is still going through the Landmark process. It sold to City Square who was set to begin rehabilitation work on the building in March of 2020 and put that on hold due to COVID -19. They would like to convert the theater and adjacent retail space into a community arts and educational center.

HIGHLAND PARK INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT SCHOOLS – Bradfield Elementary School – 4300 Southern Avenue (Highland Park), University Park Elementary School – 3505 Amherst Avenue (University Park), and Hyer Elementary School – 3920 Caruth Boulevard (Highland Park)

Three historic and architecturally significant schools in the Highland Park Independent School District are up for proposed replacement as part of this fall’s bond election. The two cities of Highland Park and University Park do not have an established mechanism for protecting historic architecture. As a result, these three schools have been deemed inadequate to meet the needs of the growing school-aged population of the Park Cities. Designed by Lang & Witchell, the 1925 Bradfield Elementary School and the 1928 University Park Elementary School feature identical plans, designed in the Spanish Revival style with added Rococo detailing. The tan, scratch-faced brick facades have monumental main entrances, decorated in typical Rococo Revival detailing, with elaborate curves, scrolls, shells, and shields adorned with fleurs-de-lis. Hyer Elementary School , which opened in 1949, is an excellent example of Mark Lemmon’s historicist architecture and is styled in the Georgian Revival aesthetic. The main entrance features a classically-inspired pediment, supported by original cast iron columns with lace detailing. The facades feature decorative hexagonal windows and nine-over-nine double-hung windows with prominent central keystones in the decorative brick headers. Preservation Dallas representatives have met with the HPISD administration to stress the importance of these historic schools. We encourage the administration to thoroughly explore the incorporation of these structures into new designs that will both meet the capacity needs of the district, while also honoring the 100-year legacy of the HPISD. There are many options which would both value the original buildings of these three historically-significant schools, designed by prominent Dallas architects, while at the same time providing HPISD with the needed additional capacity. Options include the targeted demolition of ancillary additions and the rehabilitation of the original core structures, while adding on multi-level spaces to accommodate new, 21st-century educational programs. A blend of old and new buildings would celebrate the importance of physical examples of civic history when educating young, elementary-aged children.

UPDATE: University Park Elementary was demolished in the summer of 2017, Bradfield Elementary was demolished in the summer of 2018, and Hyer Elementary was demolished in the summer of 2109. All three schools are being replaced with much larger schools out of scale and character for the surrounding neighborhoods where they are located.

HISTORIC CEMETERIES IN DALLAS – City Wide

The final resting place of many of Dallas’ founders and early residents are seeing the ravages of time and a lack of resources for proper maintenance and upkeep. Some of Dallas’ historic cemeteries date back to the 1800s, including McAdams in Oak Cliff, McCree in Lake Highlands, and Pioneer in downtown. Thanks to a grant from the B.B. Owen Trust, Preservation Dallas is currently working to restore and preserve McCree Cemetery. These cemeteries include examples of early stone grave makers with exquisite design and symbolism. Over the years, many have suffered vandalism, deterioration, storm damage, and improper upkeep of the markers. Historic cemeteries often have limited resources for care and maintenance with many markers lost in overgrowth or toppled to the ground. Historic cemeteries must be treated with the utmost respect and the resources found to properly maintain the resting places of the early citizens who helped make Dallas the city it is today.

UPDATE: The McCree Cemetery was designated a City of Dallas Landmark by the City Council in 2018 and the McAdams Cemetery was designated a City of Dallas Landmark in 2019.

LOW-RISE HISTORIC DOWNTOWN BUILDINGS – Downtown

Smaller historic buildings downtown, 2 to 4 stories in height, are rapidly vanishing due to development pressure, with four between Elm and Main Streets demolished for new development just last year. These smaller historic buildings often date to the early 1900s when Dallas was developing as a commercial center. They are tied to the retail and commercial history of the city and those that remain are often not protected by City of Dallas Landmark status. One such example is Milliner’s Supply Company Building located at 911 Elm Street. This circa 1880 historic building is one of the oldest surviving in the central business district. Milliner’s Supply , a wholesale/retail business for hats, moved into the building in 1925. This property is currently for sale and is not protected. It is also in a location downtown that is ripe for redevelopment with the potential to be replaced by a much larger and taller building allowed by zoning. These low-rise historic buildings give a human scale to downtown, present opportunities for business ventures not possible in larger, more expensive buildings, and are tangible reminders of Dallas’ early commercial history. Their reuse, instead of replacement, should be encouraged and prioritized.

SALVATION ARMY BUILDING – 6500 Harry Hines Boulevard (Medical Center)

Originally home to the Great National Life Insurance Company this office building, completed in 1963, is an outstanding example of the 1960’s garden style office complexes which sprang up around Dallas. Designed by Grayson Gill, it has a unique projecting screen of diamond shaped panels giving the building a distinctive look in contrast to the very flat, clean lines of earlier 1950s office building architecture. The Salvation Army now uses it for offices, although the building is currently for sale. The expansion and growth of medical facilities near the building raises the threat that this mid-century gem could be razed for new development.

UPDATE: The building has sold to a developer who demolished the building in 2019 to construct a new one on the site. A portion of the facade screen has been donated to the Park and Recreation Department for reuse in a city park.

Above photos by Michael Cagle.

Sites on previous Most Endangered Historic Places lists from 2004 to 2010 include: