Historic Georgian Mansion on Gaston Avenue The Great Gatsby Would Love

 

We’ve found the perfect home for anyone that longs for the era of gracious lawn parties, jazz drifting through the air, and the ever-present champagne glass in hand. Wait, that’s what the CandysDirt.com staff longs for. Wonder if we pool our resources …

Seriously though, this Georgian mansion on Gaston Avenue was built in 1925, just as F. Scott Fitzgerald was publishing The Great Gatsby. His words reflected the excitement of the “Roaring Twenties” just as this gorgeous home reflects the gracious lifestyle of a bygone era. Lucky for us, the era may be gone, but homes like this still allow us to capture the essence of that lifestyle.

This grand dame, at 5422 Gaston Avenue, is one of the famous Sister Houses. A doting father hired noted British architect, Bertram Hill to build houses for his two daughters. The other “Sister” can be found at 5450 Gaston Avenue. Lucky girls.

Hill moved to Dallas in 1921 and set about making a sizable imprint on his adopted city. He designed six houses on Swiss Avenue alone. His homes can be found on Gaston Avenue, in Lakewood, and in Highland Park. He was also a consultant on the Adolphus Hotel and designed the original Dallas and Lakewood Country Clubs. Clearly the man had a knack for building what people with taste and style wanted in his lifetime. Of course the true test, is that these homes are still highly sought after. At a listing price of $825,000, we think this is an amazing deal.

There are three spacious bedrooms, two bathrooms, and three fireplaces in the 3,709-square-foot home. A spectacular Rookwood-tiled solarium with a fountain is just off the formal living room. This is a shining example of the era — when relaxation was paramount. Anyone that could afford a sunroom, built one. Not only was taking it easy considered important, so was fresh air and sunlight.

Historic homes require sensitive updates, and we’re happy to report absolutely brilliant work has been done in modernizing, yet keeping the charm intact. The chef’s kitchen features a butler’s pantry, honed Carrera marble, a Wolf range and Sub Zero refrigerator, all seamlessly blended into a kitchen your great grandmother would approve of. This is not the sort of home where you take out a wall and create an open floor plan. That would absolutely ruin it and frankly the closed kitchen certainly has a place in the hearts of many people. We’re beginning to see this as an up-and-coming trend in New York and in Dallas.

One of the exciting things about this home is the fact it has a partial basement, not something you see often in Dallas. Even better, part of that basement has been converted to a wine room. That glass of champagne is calling to be enjoyed in the solarium!

As if all this were not enough, there’s a gorgeous backyard with a huge pool and a lovely guest house above the garage. The guest house has a living area, kitchen, bedroom and bath. Airbnb calling!

Listing agent Cory Flowers with Allie Beth Allman & Associates told us this home has been featured on the Swiss Avenue Mother’s Day Home Tour, not surprising really, it’s just a flawless example of truly gracious living. We suggest you snap it up because we are seriously doing the math… CandyDirt.com new HQ perhaps?