Enchanting Gardens Take This University Park Traditional Colonial Estate Over The Top

Enchanting is the first word I thought of as I opened the iron gate, crossed the stone bridge over the babbling brook, and wound my way up the path to see this traditional Colonial estate.

There is always a story when you see a property that looks like this. So I began my deep dive into the Dallas Morning News archives and was delighted to find page after page about the family that built this traditional Colonial in 1946.

Charles M. Johnson and his wife lived here for decades. He and his brother, D.L., moved Johnson Brothers Chevrolet from Ennis to Dallas, opening the dealership in 1935 at 1917 Ross Avenue, which was nicknamed motor row back then. By 1938, the firm led all dealers in the U.S. in sales. In January of 1947, they opened the largest Chevrolet dealership in Dallas with the city’s biggest indoor showroom at Ross and Saint Paul. The Johnson brothers were light years ahead of the curve in service and quality.

Charles built a home befitting a businessman of his stature. It was not only perfect for his family and for entertaining on a large scale, but it was also ideally located yet beautifully secluded. This traditional Colonial estate was indeed carved out of almost a half-acre of natural woodland.

The two-story home has 4,784 square feet with four large bedrooms, five bathrooms, a powder bath, and guest quarters offering another 448 square feet.

The home initially had a Preston Road address. Once Mrs. Johnson got her hands on the woodland, it’s not at all surprising it eventually shifted to Saint Andrews.

You see, Mrs. Johnson was quite the gardener, belonging to the Texas Garden Club and the Southern Garden Club, winning numerous prizes at each. She was also very well-traveled, having sailed on the R.M.S Queen Mary, bringing back inspiration from the gardens of Europe.

By July 1949, Mrs. Johnson has made enough progress to be featured in an article in the Dallas Morning News by Nancy Richey Ranson. I’m sharing several paragraphs from that article because I don’t think anyone, including me, could describe this garden as well as she did and give you a real sense of life here.

Outdoor Living Room Favored Garden Spot

Mr. and Mrs. C.M. Johnson have made their garden, 6231 St. Andrews Drive, into beautiful and highly comfortable summer living and recreational quarters. They spend evenings on a brick terrace, some thirty feet square, that extends across both living room and den and overlooks a velvety lawn that slopes down to the shaded barbecue pit across a walled creek.

Many pieces of lounging furniture and a large sun umbrella add coziness to the terrace. Its charm is enhanced by a large mimosa tree which drapes its feathery foliage and blooms over one large corner. The terrace is hedged about with blossoming, fragrant abelia, lined by rosy morn petunias.

Extending across the other side of the house’s frontage is a bed of red salvia. Off to the side are lemon daylilies in a bed just inside a native red cedar hedge.

When the Johnsons moved into their home three years ago, much of the yard in front was still natural woodland. They planted this space to grass, removing all trees except those at the extreme front of the lot. Between the present lawn and the native trees, there is a stream walled with native stone to a height of about eight feet.

When the Johnsons moved into their home three years ago, much of the yard in front was still natural woodland. They planted this space to grass, removing all trees except those at the extreme front of the lot. Between the present lawn and the native trees, there is a stream walled with native stone to a height of about eight feet.

Across the deep-walled little creek from the house and lawn, the barbecue pit has been built on a flagstone terrace. One must cross a little stone bridge to reach this terrace and broil savory steaks, hamburgers, and chicken. It is a delightful place for picnic suppers; it is presided over by two large locust trees, redbuds, flowering peach, and other trees that bring liveliness to the landscape in spring. Eleven-year-old Peggy Sue Johnson and her chums make frequent use of the barbecue pit for hamburger and wiener roasts, and for that matter, so do the senior members of the family.

It is a lovely garden from every angle, with ascending or descending long green vistas, but the Johnsons, like it best, not as a garden but as an outdoor living room.

This traditional Colonial estate seems to have always been at the center of teas, parties, fundraisers, and events over the many years the Johnson family lived here. The kitchen was featured on the “Kitchen” Home Tour” for the Dallas Symphony Orchestra League in September of 1955.

The house has been beautifully maintained and updated over the years to the point it’s hard to remember it was built in the 1940s until you realize structure and character like this is impossible to duplicate. However, it’s the garden, visible at every vantage point of the home, that is so completely enchanting.

“It’s a bit mysterious when you first walk through the gate,” Compass Real Estate listing agent Carmen DiPenti said. “It piques your interest and draws you in, and then you don’t want to leave. It has such a serene, calming effect on you. Time passes, and you don’t notice.”

Carmen is absolutely right.

I met him to look at the home again after George Bass Stage & Design had finished adding their magic touch to this traditional Colonial. We sat on the flagstone patio, and I could have sat there for hours, listening to the water feature and gazing over the terraced yard. It’s one of the most relaxing properties I’ve ever seen, and I am going to figure out a way to go back and see it once everything is in full bloom.

We have many lovely homes in Dallas but rarely do you find one this beautiful that offers such a sense of peace.

It’s hard to put a price tag on that, but I think at $3.299 million, you’ll find 6231 Saint Andrews Drive to be worth every penny, and then some.