Tuesday Two Hundred: Junius Heights Prairie House Charms With Vintage Aesthetic

Today’s Tuesday Two Hundred takes us to Junius Heights in Old East Dallas to look at a lovely Prairie Style house that just hit the market June 1.

The Prairie Style of residential architecture made its debut in Dallas in 1907 with a house on Abrams Road, based on the plans Frank Lloyd Wright published in Ladies Home Journal six years earlier. This style was popular in the Midwest and Texas, a distinctly American design idea featuring a low-pitched roof, large overhanging eaves, central chimney, discipline in the use of ornamentation, and low, horizontal lines.

Just three years later, the house at 5614 Worth St. made its appearance near Beacon and Gaston. It’s not a perfect example of the Prairie Style, but comes close, with its warm earth-tone palette, horizontal wood siding, interior glass doors, and other “style appropriate” interior architectural details.

With three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and 1,416 square feet, this Junius Heights Prairie house is modest in size, but offers a lot of function and beauty in that space. There are minor cosmetic fixes needed in parts of the house, like the second bathroom, but overall, it’s great. Plus, the location is prime, just minutes away from Lakewood, Lower Greenville, White Rock Lake, and other hot spots for shopping and dining.

This house is listed by Ebby Halliday agent Kay Caughron for $249,000. (As happens so often lately in our red hot North Texas real estate market, it went under contract in three days—it’s a charmer!)

The Craftsman-style door leads into a front sitting room, with a decorative fireplace, arched doorways, a decorative arched window, built-in shelves with glass doors, and hardwood floors that carry through the entire house (except bathrooms). The current owners are using it as a entry hall, but it has potential as an entertainment space, too. Glass doors lead into the dining room.

The dining room and living room are both off the front room. Throughout the house, plentiful windows keep the space bright and light, and neutral paint colors make the rooms feel calm and welcoming.

The kitchen layout is slightly awkward, with the gas cooktop and microwave separated from the sink and tile countertops. But overall, it has a cute look with the hardwoods, decorative detailing above the sink, and freshly painted cream cabinets. Nearby is a utility room with hookups for a full-size washer-dryer (electric).

The house has three bedrooms, two of which are pictured above. The master bedroom is 24-by-11, long and narrow with four windows and a door leading out to one of two decks in the backyard. The main bathroom, pictured above, features a clawfoot bathtub and pedestal sink. Not too much room for storage, but quaint with its wainscoting and vintage lighting.

Two deck patios offer great relaxation spaces in the yard, a lovely sight with shade trees, an in-ground planter, and just enough green grass. There’s a storage shed along the back privacy fence, and parking is uncovered along the side of the house, or out front (since cars were not yet invented when this house was built in 1910, there is no garage).

The owners replaced the roof last year using dimensional architectural shingles, among the highest quality roofing shingles manufactured. Ceiling fans throughout the house help with air circulation and cooling costs, as well.

It’s really no surprise that this Junius Heights Prairie went under contract so quickly—it’s got location, personality, vintage charm, updates, and green space. Leave us a comment with your thoughts about the house!