History

When Henrietta Frichot Wilson and her husband Frederick Wilson decided to build their Victorian mansion on Swiss Avenue, they acquired the entire city block from Henrietta’s uncle, Jacob Nussbaumer. Nussbaumer was a settler from the La Reunion colony, an ill-fated attempt to create an agrarian utopian community of artists, musicians, scientists, intellectuals and philosophers on the banks of the Trinity River.

The Wilsons built six additional houses on the block as rental properties, so they could choose their neighbors from among their friends. Early in the 20th century, children played in the lot next door, deliberately left vacant for that purpose. Neighbors could stroll in Central Square Park to the east - the second public park to be built in Dallas. And as more people moved into the neighborhood, houses began replacing farmland across Swiss Avenue.

As the years passed, the city of Dallas grew, and families began to move away from the area. Commercial buildings replaced many of the Victorian houses and others were converted for commercial use. The Wilson Block was the exception. Laurence Wilson, Henrietta and Frederick’s son continued to live in the Wilson house until the late 1970s. And though many of the houses needed repair, the Wilson Block survived.

Fox and Jacobs, a developer of large suburban tract communities, made a decision in the mid-70s to build a neighborhood of new homes in the inner city. While acquiring land for the development, the Wilson Block came into the company’s possession. Recognizing its cultural value, the developer made it available to the Historic Preservation League, the organization that later became Preservation Dallas. The League restored the Arnold House, named for a distinguished Wilson Block tenant, and then enlisted the support of the Meadows Foundation for the restoration of the remaining structures.

The Meadows Foundation saw the potential of the Wilson Block as the nucleus for a unique campus of non-profit organizations. After restoring Wilson Block, the Meadows Foundation and the Historic Preservation League identified and moved endangered Victorian houses in other parts of town to an adjacent block of Swiss Avenue. The Meadows Foundation also added building for meetings and other support facilities, and built a large new facility nearby to house its own operations. Central Square Park was restored for the City of Dallas, and once again became a site for picnics and strollers. And, in 1993, the Historic Preservation League moved into the Wilson House and established the Preservation Center and Intown Living Center. Today the Meadows Foundation properties house about 30 non-profit organizations on a rent-free basis.

About the Architecture

Visitors to the Wilson Block are captivated by the two blocks of stunning Victorian architecture. Common characteristics include steeply pitched, irregularly shaped roofs and dominant front-facing gables. Textured wood shingles were used in conjunction with clapboard siding. Many of the houses have porches that are generally one story and commonly extend along one or more of the outside walls. Queen Anne houses also feature multicolored paint schemes. It was customary to use three or more different colors on the exterior of the houses to accentuate the elaborate trim work.

Originally, the rear of most of the houses had screened porches both up and downstairs. The upstairs porch was a sleeping porch - many Victorians believed in the beneficial effects of abundant fresh air. The back downstairs porch was an open space for household chores such as washing, ironing, and food preparation. All of the houses had cisterns on each porch.

Tour Information

Visitors are invited to take a self-guided tour or a 45 minute guided tour of the Wilson Block. The tour begins with an 11-minute video, "Echoes History of the Wilson Historic District" in the Wilson Carriage House near the Floyd Street parking lot. A guided tour around the two blocks of Victorian buildings follows. Please feel free to bring a sack lunch to enjoy in nearby Central Square Park.

Visitors may tour the Wilson Block Tuesday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. Tours are free and no appointment is necessary, however groups are encouraged to make advance reservations. For more information or to schedule a tour, please call Preservation Dallas at (214) 821-3290.

St. James African Methodist Episcopal

History

In 1914, the St. James African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Temple congregation purchased two lots of land at 624 North Good Latimer. When the congregation was ready to build a brick and concrete church in 1919, they hired William Sydney Pittman, Dallas’ first African American architect, to design the church. Donations were received from all over the United States to fund the construction of the beautiful Neoclassical building.

Built between 1919 and 1921, the church was constructed entirely by African American contractors and building crews. The church was dedicated in 1921 and housed the St. James AME congregation for 64 years. In the 1920s and 30s, the congregation grew substantially from its original 325 members. The construction of an underpass under the Houston and Central rail yard increased the flow of traffic past the church and into Deep Ellum, the area’s African American shopping district. At its height in the 1940s, the church membership was the largest AME congregation in North America.

Throughout the years, the congregation made slight alterations to the church. In 1983, local developer Richard Finley purchased the church, and gutted and renovated the building for a law firm. The law firm occupied the building until 1998, when the Meadows Foundation purchased the church. The Meadows Foundation renovated and rehabilitated the interior as offices and restored the exterior facades to preserve this important example of Pittman’s architecture. The building now houses offices for the Mental Health Association of Greater Dallas and The Conference of Southwest Foundations.

About the Architecture

The St. James AME Church is a stunning example of Neoclassical design. The architectural elements feature:

• A large gabled portico with massive white concrete columns dominating the front façade
• A masonry platform (or podium) that supports the columns
• A pedimented cornice with a stained glass transom
• Four step-shouldered brick buttresses framing the three central wood [word is missing from original source]
• Stained glass windows in the second story windows
• Third story arched wood lucarnes glazed with opalescent glass

When the interior was gutted in 1983, the historic elements were removed. The exterior has also lost original design elements, including:

• A pair of stairways and balustrades flanked the portico to create a formal entry for church members from the street.
• The original central entry doors and those on each side were replaced by glass doors, although the stained glass transoms have been retained.
• Above the portico, the pediment once contained a round stained glass window, now replaced with a circular wood vent.
• The platform supporting the column had three segmented arches, which are now filled with windows.
• The original hipped roof was punctuated at the center by a metal drum that supported a metal dome and oculus.
• The oculus once illuminated the interior of the building. It was constructed of stained opalescent glass and featured a center piece embellished with the “eyes of God.” The design incorporated a circular band with a dedication by the principal donors, “W.M. McDonald, Jr. By his parents.” The oculus is now concealed beneath a pent roof that provides for turbine vents, communication antennae, and lightning rods.