The City of Dallas is making Permitting, Historic Preservation Applications, and other Planning & Development functions even easier to complete. DallasNow launches on May 5.
Learn more at Dallas.gov/DallasNow!
Notice To Dallas Historic District Residents:
Saturday, May 10th • 10AM-6PM
Sunday, May 11th • Noon-6PM
50th
Year
Tickets Also Available At:
Talulah & HESS in the Skillman-Live Oak Shopping Center
RAIN OR SHINE!
Join Us For The 50th Annual
Swiss Avenue Historic District Mother's Day Home Tour
Attractions & Events During The Tour
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Some of the city's most popular Food Trucks will be on hand all weekend, including Cousin's Maine Lobster, Ruthie's Rolling Cafe, Hamburger Man, Cowtown Dogs, Travelin' Tom's Coffee Truck, and Kona Ice. Ala carte food and beverages will be available in Savage Park Saturday from 11AM to 6PM; and on Sunday from 11AM to 6PM.
Food
Trucks
Live Music & Entertainment
Throughout the weekend, we will feature a variety of musical entertainment on the main stage in Savage Park. We invite you to take a break anytime during the tour to relax with a cold drink and a snack under the Live Oak trees while you enjoy the scheduled performances.
Children's Activity Area
Enjoy a cool beverage under the sprawling Live Oak trees in Savage Park while you kick back, relax and keep an eye on your little ones in our adjacently located Children's Play Area.
It will be brimming with kid friendly activities, including games, crafts, face painting, sidewalk chalk & inflatable basketball tosses
Artisan
Market
Find that special gift for Mom, for yourself, or for anyone else! Take a break from touring the homes to browse our arts & crafts fair on the median across from Savage Park. Discover a variety of unique crafts, jewelry, art, books and other assorted delights and delectables.
Mother's Day Brunch At Society Bakery
Join us for Mother's Day Brunch on Sunday, May 11th, at Society Bakery's Bistro-inspired Tea Room at Skillman-Live Oak Shopping Center in Lakewood. There will be two seatings, at 10:30AM and 12:00 Noon. Each Brunch Reservation includes a ticket to the home tour.
We are limited to 48 guests per seating, so reserve your seats today.
Support Historic Preservation In Dallas During This Time-Honored Annual Event
The Swiss Avenue Historic District Mother's Day Home Tour, this year celebrating its 52nd year and it's 50th tour, is an eagerly awaited annual event designed to build community; welcoming all to
experience the architecture, history and interior design of its historically significant homes.
The Tour will occur over Mother’s Day Weekend, May 10th - May 11th, and will welcome an average attendance of 5,000 guests. The Tour features six homes that reflect the neighborhood’s diverse architectural influences.
A portion of the tour proceeds will benefit the local community. Past recipients include Lipscomb Elementary, J.L. Long Middle School, and Woodrow Wilson High School. The SAHDA Outreach Committee will nominate our 2025 recipients. Additionally, tour proceeds support revitalization efforts such as restoring Savage Park in the Swiss Avenue Historic District, maintaining District green spaces, and funding crime prevention initiatives.
Presented By
Our 2025 Sponsors
Media Sponsor
Outreach Sponsor
Savage Park Sponsor
Transportation Sponsor
Mother's Day Brunch Sponsor
Entertainment Sponsor
Home Sponsors
SAHD MAY BOARD MEETING
Tuesday, May 20th
6:30 PM – Social
7:00 PM – Meeting
Please join us for our May Neighborhood Board Meeting. Committee Chairs will be updating residents on issues of interest to the neighborhood at large, including reports on Home Tour results, Alliance Against Crime activities, Outreach initiatives, Planning & Zoning concerns, and Beautification progress.
All District Residents and Propery Owners are encouraged to attend.
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WE LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING EVERYONE AT THE MEETING
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In Person at Lakewood Towers
6301 Gaston Avenue, 1st-Floor Conference Room
For The Agenda, Please Refer To The Email Sent From The Association Secretary Just Prior To The Meeting.
How It All Began
A Look Back At The Origins Of Our Very First Swiss Avenue Home Tour In 1973
This year marked the 50th Anniversary of what has grown to become one of our city's most popular annual events. From it's humble beginnings in 1973 as a catalyst for promoting and preserving the homes in one of Dallas's only existing original residential neighborhoods, The Swiss Avenue Historic District Mother's Day Home Tour now attracts thousands of visitors every May to honor and celebrate our shared history.
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A recent article in the Lakewood Advocate tells more of the story.
You can read it at the link below.
THE MARK OF A LEADER
Swiss Avenue Receives An Updated Historic Marker Recognizing Nationally Renowned Preservationist, Virginia Savage McAlester
On Saturday afternoon, November 11th, an updated State of Texas historic marker was unveiled in front of the Harris-Savage-McAlester House at 5703 Swiss Avenue. The existing marker was augmented to include recognition of one our district's most ardent supporters, nationally recognized Historic Preservationist, Author, and Architectural Historian, Virginia Savage McAlester, who was instrumental in the early formation of our city's first historic districts as well as a co-founder of Preservation Dallas and Friends of Fair Park.
The plaque was unveiled by Ms. McAlester's granddaughters, Virginia and Clementine Talkington. Dedication remarks were shared by Executive Director of the Texas Historical Foundation, David Presiosi; former Texas State Representative, The Honorable Dr. Harryette Ehrhardt; and Ms. McAlester's daughter, Amy Talkington. A reception following the unveiling was hosted by Ms. Talkington and Elizabeth Mast on the front terrace of Ms. Mast's Swiss Avenue home.
In addition to Dr. Ehrhardt, Mr. Presiosi, and Ms. Talkington, other dignitaries attending the event included Dallas Landmark Commissioners Jim Anderson, Larry Offutt, and Commission Chair, Dr. Evelyn Montgomery; Chair of the Dallas County Historical Commission, Elizabeth Gunby; Preservation Dallas Board Member, Nancy Shelton; Ms. McAlester's son, Carty Talkington; her stepson, Kevin McAlester; and her longtime partner, collaborator, and book photographer, Steve Clicque.
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Candy's Dirt Visits The Second Saturdays Living History Tour At Aldredge House
In the Aldredge House Dining Room, Martha Heimberg (center left) and Rikki Sushaun (center right) portray staff members of the house's original owners, Willie & Will Lewis.
Candy Evans, founder of Candy's Dirt, the award-winning news site popular among real-estate lovers, along with her granddaughter, Hattie, and features writer, Karen Eubank, all attended the January performance of the Second Saturdays Living History Tour at Aldredge House. To read the article describing their experience, click on the photo link above.
Second Saturdays
Aldredge House
at the
STEP BACK TO A SIMPLER TIME
JOIN US ON THE SECOND SATURDAY OF EACH MONTH
FOR LIVING HISTORY TOURS AT ALDREDGE HOUSE
The Aldredge House invites you to travel back with us to a simpler place and time; to a Gilded Age steeped in gentility, refinement, and the finer things in life. Join us on the Second Saturday of each month for Living History Tours that will transport you to back to the early days of Swiss Avenue when, in 1917, West Texas Rancher, Will Lewis, commissioned renowned architect Hal Thomson to design and build this magnificent French Eclectic Mansion as a wedding gift for his Debutante Bride, Willie Newberry.
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Actors outfitted in period costumes portray individuals who played significant roles in the Aldredge House's illustrious history, including its earliest owners, their maids, their chauffeurs, and even their family physician.
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DOORS OPEN AT 10 AM FOR HOUSE TOURS. LIVING HISTORY TOURS BEGIN AT 11 AM
To rsvp for the tour, or for more information, Email us at:
A BIT About Our District
The Swiss Avenue Historic District, in Old East Dallas, is a diverse neighborhood containing the finest collection of Early 20th Century residential architecture in the entire Southwest. Established in 1905 by real-estate developer, Robert Munger, it was designated in 1973 as the first historic district in the City of Dallas. It is an official Dallas Landmark District and, in 1974, the entire District was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
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The boundaries of The Swiss Avenue Historic District include portions of some of the city's earliest streets:
Beacon Street • Bryan Parkway • Bryan Street
La Vista Drive • Live Oak Street • Swiss Avenue
Beacon Street
Bryan Parkway
Bryan Street
La Vista Drive
Live Oak Street
Swiss Avenue
With Profound Gratitude
Historic preservation throughout the City of Dallas exists largely due to the exemplary efforts of our neighbor, our friend, and our District's most ardently devoted advocate,
Virginia Savage McAlester
Virginia dedicated her life's work to preserving, protecting and promoting the historic dignity of her native hometown. She was the nation's foremost authority on historic architecture; she was instrumental in the founding of our District, which became this City's first Historic District; and she spearheaded efforts throughout our community that have impacted and improved the quality of life for us all.
Her contributions will reverberate for generations to come. For that, and for so much more, we are profoundly grateful.
Virginia Savage McAlester
May 13, 1943 – April 9, 2020
THE BRILLIANCE OF VIRGINIA SAVAGE McALESTER
In tribute to our dear friend and neighbor, Virginia Savage McAlester, we invite you to view the video below, featuring a lecture on the History of Munger Place presented by Virginia at the Hall of State in Fair Park on May 18, 2017
As you walk our scenic neighborhood, you may have noticed bronze plaques installed near the sidewalks in front of some of the homes. Our neighbor, Virginia Dupuy, worked with City Hall to obtain approval for SAHD residents to install these plaques on their properties.
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The purpose of the plaques is to identify the year of a home's construction, its architectural style, the architect/builder (if known), and the original owner. If there's room remaining on the plaques, a fact or two about the history of the home or its original owners can be added. Although there are only a handful of these plaques in place today, visitors walking our District frequently stop to read them.
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If you are interested in obtaining one of these plaques for your property, the process is relatively simple. A Certificate of Appropriateness is required. City Staff can approve the wording without going before the full Landmark Commission but you will be asked to provide the source of the facts you will be displaying.
Bring Home
The Bronze
Two good, reliable sources of information are the fileson our Historic District located at Preservation Dallas, and a Masters Thesis available at the Dallas Public Library downtown. The 3-volume thesis, titled, "History and Guide to the Swiss Avenue Historic District", was written in the 1970s by three architecture students at UT Arlington: Robert L. Canavan, Patricia T. Canavan, and Judy S. Dooley.
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Erie Landmark Company is the manufacturer of the plaques (637 Hempfield Hill Road, Columbia, PA 17512, Telephone: 800-874-7848). The cost of one plaque is approximately $250. Under the agreement with the City, the plaques are to be installed on a flat concrete pad that can be easily fabricated by your handyman.
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