Join us for our February events!
Save the Date!
Lobello House open for touring on March 7!!
We are happy to report that the work on the reconstruction of the 1962 Charles Dilbeck designed Lobello House, which was destroyed by fire in 2017, has been finished using the original Dilbeck plans for the house as a guide. The house was scheduled to be on our Fall Architectural Tour last October and we had to take it off of the tour as the work was not completed enough where it would have been safe or enjoyable to see the property. But now it is gorgeous and ready for touring! Those who purchased tickets for the Fall Architectural Tour will get to see the house as part of their tickets purchased last fall and if you were not able to go on the tour you can still see the house for a ticket fee. More information on the Lobello House tour will be coming soon!
The Historic House Specialist seminar
to be held next month!
Become an authority of historic Dallas neighborhoods! This popular two-day seminar includes lectures from local experts on architectural history and styles of Dallas, the preservation ordinance, property tax incentives, how to research the history of a building, and more! It also includes a bus tour of historic neighborhoods in Dallas. Participants receive a copy of Virginia McAlester’s  A Field Guide to American Houses  and a complimentary one year Individual membership to Preservation Dallas.

Don’t delay! Enrollment is limited to 25 people. The past sessions have sold out with a wait list!

REGISTRATION:
The workshop is $230 and includes lunch and a light breakfast on both days. Realtors will receive 8 hours MCE credit. 

Register online with MetroTex Association of REALTORS, or at 214-540-2751.
William Thompson Exhibit
at the Wilson House extended through February
If you didn't get a chance to see the exhibit of the impressive work of William James Thompson’s Depression era architectural drawings of Dallas area landmarks during the Holiday Party make sure to stop by the Wilson House this month.

Thompson worked for Texas Power and Light in their construction and design department.. Due to the Depression, the company put him on a half time basis and in his time off, he took to sketching and hit the streets - his mission was to document Dallas. He was never commissioned, but his eye for detail and passion for Texas history led to a collection of beautiful vignettes from a long time ago, some of which are now long gone.

The Thompson family donated the collection to the Dallas Public Library who has generously let us exhibit the sketches in the Wilson House before they return to the library to be scanned and properly archived. We thank the family for sharing these incredibly detailed sketches with us and our Preservation Dallas members.
PRESERVATION ISSUES
400 W Tenth Street - This two-story 115 year old Neoclassical style house in Oak Cliff came up for a Demolition Delay review the end of last year. It is located in the Demolition Delay area which was expanded in 2018 to cover more of Oak Cliff and cover new areas of Oak Lawn and East Dallas. With the Demolition Delay process a public meeting is held to review the request. At the meeting for 400 W Tenth Street the new property owner said they want to demolish the house to incorporate the lot into a new apartment development. Shannon Neffendorf of Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters stepped up with the offer to move the house in order to save it. After the meeting the property owner and Shannon worked out a deal to allow him to move the house. To read more about the story in the Oak Cliff Advocate or to view a clip of the story on CBS 11.

Henry Barrow's Filling Station - This month the former Star Service Station located on Singleton Boulevard came to the Landmark Commission for the initiation of the Landmark designation process for the building. The station was owned by Henry Barrow, father of Clyde Barrow, and was used during Clyde's crime spree for meetings. After Clyde's death the station was shot at and explosives placed there in an effort to keep Clyde's parents from testifying against members of his gang. At the Landmark meeting the case was tabled until March 2 as a new process has gone into effect for the Landmark process and the Commission wanted to wait until all the details of the new process were made available to the Commission.

Kalita Humphreys Theater – The Steering Committee for the Master Plan update has selected a firm to work on the update to the Master Plan. A contract is currently being negotiated with the firm and once that is done their name will be released. After that the new firm with start work and begin engaging the public. The plan update is to be completed by the end of this year.  
Director's Letter
David Preziosi
For my letter this month I wanted to talk about the McCree Cemetery project we have been working on for several years now as we have some new and exciting things happening with it this year. As a recap, we received grant funding several years back to document and preserve the historic 2.6 acre cemetery in the Lake Highlands area of Dallas. Officially deeded in 1866, McCree Cemetery contains the graves of Peters Colonists, pioneer settlers, war veterans, freedmen from the surrounding hamlets of Audelia, Rodgers, and Egypt (a.k.a. Little Egypt), and members of the early area Methodist and Baptist churches. There are two sides to the cemetery, one for whites and one for African Americans. The cemetery has a state historic marker and was designated a City of Dallas Landmark in 2018.

Thanks to the funding from the B.B. Owen Trust, a Cultural Resources Survey Resources report for the cemetery was completed in 2017 by Versar with information about its history, families buried there along with a map and inventory of the markers. In addition, oral histories completed by Richland college students were included in the report and featured people associated with the Little Egypt community which used to be located in the area and had ties to the African American section of the cemetery. We have also been maintaining the cemetery by keeping it mowed year round and have been working on getting a friends group established to eventually take over care of the cemetery.

After receiving additional funding last year, we were able to engage Versar on another phase of the project. This next phase involves repair of many of the markers in the cemetery and documenting the site through drone footage before and after the work. In order to start the work, we had to have several of the trees trimmed and the brush and invasive vegetation removed last month to provide better access to some of the markers and give the drone a cleaner image. The before drone work was also completed last month. It is amazing that technology has brought us drones that can take great images from the air and be easily controlled by a single person. A drone operator was brought in to do the work and he flew the drone at 30, 60, and 120 meters in a programmed course back and forth over the cemetery. The drone images will then be digitally stitched together to form a high resolution aerial image of the cemetery, something which we didn’t have before. In the next couple of months, we hope to start work on the markers themselves. Many have been toppled over or have been broken over the years. Where possible they will be repaired and reset. Some of the pieces of broken markers have been laid in concrete in the ground so we may not be able to repair those.

After the marker repair is finished more drone footage will be taken to show the after condition. The goal is to take the drone footage and make it available online where you can view the cemetery and the individual markers. This will be a great tool and a help to people that are unable to visit to the cemetery in person. We will also be working on some repairs to the existing fence and plan to remove a portion of it between the two sides of the cemetery so that you can go from one to another without having to go outside of the cemetery fence to access either side.

With all of this incredible work going on at the cemetery we want others to learn about what we are doing on a technical level in the hopes that it will help other cemeteries and cemetery groups to preserve cemeteries. To do that, we are looking at holding a workshop in the fall on cemetery and masonry work to show what we have done and to bring in experts to talk about properly maintaining and repairing cemeteries and teach others about the work. So stay tuned for that!

And, here are some images of the cemetery and the drone work. 
EVENTS
Documentary Screening:
Speak My Name and I Shall Live Again

Tuesday, February 18
Ervay Theater
6:00 p.m.

In the documentary film Speak My Name and I Shall Live Again , Sacramento resident Sharon Styles explores the history of her family and a once-forgotten Bull Hill Cemetery in Marlin, located in Falls County, Texas. Many cultures believe people have three deaths. When they pass away, when they are buried and when their name is spoken for the last time. Watch as lost ancestors are found and the forgotten are remembered. Experience Sharon's emotional journey to find her roots and seek answers about her family's place in American history. After the film screening there will be a Q&A with Sharon Styles, Dr. Jim Bruseth, Dr. Nedra Lee and John Crain.
InTown Outing: Nance House and The Gaston
Wednesday, February 26
4802 Gaston Avenue
6:00 p.m.


Join us as we tour two gorgeous homes next door to each other in the Peak Suburban Historic District, the Nance House and The Gaston Bed & Breakfast. The owners, siblings Liz and Mike Gibson, will give a tour and history of each.

Nance House, a 2019 Preservation Achievement Award winner, was built about 1915 as a home, later becoming a boarding house and then subdivided into apartments. The current owners have painstaking returned the property to a single family dwelling. The Gaston Bed & Breakfast has been restored and turned in a five bedroom bed and breakfast facility with a large dining room and exterior event space. Each bedroom has been named with a link to Dallas history.
Did you know that when you shop for the holidays at AmazonSmile, they donate to Preservation Dallas? Click on the logo above to get started!
Preservation Dallas participates in the Tom Thumb Good Neighbor program. Link our Good Neighbor number to your Tom Thumb loyalty card and a percentage of your purchases will be credited towards us! Our number is 11352. Enroll your card here!  
Preservation Dallas participates in the Kroger Community Rewards program. Enroll your Kroger Plus card with Preservation Dallas as the benefactor. Our number is TX617. Enroll your card here!
Please Welcome our New Members!
Sustainer
Gary Cunningham
Mark Mobley & William Liese
Jim Stone

Individual
Chad Martin
Molly Tepera

Young Professionals
Katrina Scott
Thank you to the following members for renewing!
Erin Banna
James & Barbara Baynham
Mary Harbour
Linda Helton
Lisa & Chuck Hodge
Greg Johnston
Jennifer Picquet-Reyes
Katherine Power
Chase Stone
Daron Tapscott
This newsletter is sent to all current and past members, and those interested in preservation in Dallas. To become a member or to renew or upgrade your membership, please click below.
CORPORATE PARTNERS
Joe M. and Doris R. Dealey Family Foundation
Preservation Dallas | 2922 Swiss Avenue | Dallas TX 752518