On The Road Again: Miss Belle’s House Finds a Temporary Site in Richardson

Miss Belle’s House, perhaps the most mobile home in Dallas-Fort Worth, was on the move again recently. But let’s not confuse Miss Belle’s House with a manufactured home on wheels.

The property, also known as the Hill-Robberson House, has been a Texas historic landmark since 1982 and is owned by the City of Richardson. The wooden, two-story house was built around 1887 at 206 Sherman St. In 1979, the house was moved to a former Owens Spring Creek Farm site.

Earlier this month, Miss Belle’s House was put on a trailer with wheels and it moved again.

To get the house mobile, crews with Fort Worth-based H.D. Snow and Son House Moving placed beams under the home using hydraulic lifts and hoisted the structure onto a wheeled trailer. The home, which is 26 feet wide and 36 feet long, lumbered an eighth of a mile east on Lockout Drive to a temporary location adjacent to the Fire Training and Emergency Operations Center.

Miss Belle’s House was a private school run by Virginia Bell “Miss Belle” Robberson for 40 years. It was also home to several families before it was donated to the city in 1979 and moved to the Owens site. The Junior League of Richardson maintains the building and manages tours.

Last year, property owner Standridge Companies asked the city to move the home to make way for redevelopment. The Texas Historical Commission approved the move.

The city budgeted $100,000 for the move. The city expected to pay about $70,000 to move the building and $30,000 more to cover the costs of temporary power and security cameras, according to a presentation Richardson Assistant City Manager Shanna Sims-Bradish at the March 22 City Council meeting (Watch the presentation here).

City leaders plan to meet over the next year to decide on a permanent location for the home.

At that point, Miss Bell’s House is probably on the road again.