The Buckner House: Liberace, Legend, And Casa Linda’s Iconic Estate
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Have you noticed we give grand houses names? Have you also noticed that East Dallas has been a hot spot for some of the grandest?
We all know Mount Vernon on White Rock Lake, The DeGolyer Estate, and the once glorious Belle Nora on Garland Road. Then there was Grandwick, gutted by fire after a brief life as the Dallas Scientology Center.
But nothing has been more mysterious than The Buckner House. It’s that big Mediterranean on the right side of North Buckner as you head towards I-30, and it’s for sale.
The Buckner House was built in 1925. Remember, this was the year The Great Gatsby was published. It was the height of the Roaring ’20s, and if you had money and were smart, you designed a home that was a showplace.
Mediterranean architecture was cutting-edge in this era. It made a statement about taste and wealth and was the preferred style of those with both. The Mediterranean style is also an enduring one. Just consider Villa Vizcaya and the Biltmore in Miami — still standing, still cool.
Our photographer, Mimi Perez, and I were invited to tour The Buckner House this summer. It’s 5,733 square feet, with a marvelous cupola where I’d spend every evening with a nice glass of bubbly. The views are breathtaking, and the windows in the home are gorgeous. There are stained glass and bottle glass windows and a gorgeous quatrefoil window overlooking the front lawn.
The grand salon has marvelous ceiling beams and the balcony railings on the second floor overlook the action below. If you close your eyes, you can imagine those 1920s parties with the ladies in flapper dresses, men in tuxedos, and a raccoon coat or two flung over the settees. There was even a pool, long since filled in, but can you imagine? You know there had to be skinny dipping going on here.
From my deep sleuthing, I found this was the party house for decades. It was purchased by Lee C. Harrison, the president of the Prairie Oil & Gas Company of Dallas. His daughter went to Hockaday, so you know there were plenty of school parties, barbecues, teas, and balls here — and probably more skinny dipping.
John Maxwell owned The Buckner House in the early 1950s.
“He was friends with Tom Hughes,” Bruce McShan of McShan Florists told me. Hughes was the much-beloved producer and managing director of the Dallas Summer Musicals from 1962 to 1993. He was responsible for bringing in celebrities like Carol Burnett, Yul Brynner, Ginger Rogers, Katherine Hepburn, and Liberace.
“Some of the stars stayed at the house while working at the music hall,” Mc Shan said. What a great way to avoid the paparazzi.
One of the most amusing things you’ll find on the home’s exterior is the faces. There are faces carved into the stone on columns, and one is up high on a corner of the house. The former staff quarters also have an amusing touch, with a top hat design in the linoleum.
So what’s the deal?
It was with little fanfare that this home hit the market a few months ago. I suspect that the reason is twofold. First, it sits on a smidge over four acres, which can lure what we preservationists consider an unsuitable buyer.
Second, the house has been vacant for about 15 years. Obviously, it needs love but that is where the education factor comes into play and finding that suitable buyer. Of course, I turned to the President of the Preservation Dallas Board, architect Norman Alston for insight.
People say they cannot fix something because they don’t know how to fix it. I often hear something cannot be fixed, or it’s going to cost too much and is not worth it. If you are not in the restoration and preservation business, you should not be gauging restorability.
No matter how something looks, it’s almost always the case with a residential structure that it is never too far gone to restore. If it has not burned, it’s probably salvageable. Buildings are far more resilient than people give them credit for.
One of the things I encounter with existing buildings that have been allowed to deteriorate is so many people cannot see past that. You have to envision a building as it once was. There is a different approach to economically putting a historic building back. You have to have the skills and know the techniques. We have to look at something and say it has value.
You bring it back, and you will have something greater than a new piece of property. That is why they make TV shows about fixing old houses! Time is not an indicator of salvageability. In Europe, people salvage. They don’t tear down. We struggle with making appropriate decisions about existing buildings. Look at the Baker Hotel in Mineral Wells, for example. It sat vacant for decades. It’s finally being restored to its former glory and turning Mineral Wells into a destination again.
It’s easy to find someone to tell you to tear a building or a house down, but I think we are finally seeing a cultural awakening to the value of cool buildings from our past.
Norm Alston
And indeed, this is a cool building with an extraordinary history. When it was built, Casa Linda was called Reinhardt, and the entire area had only about a hundred people. It did not even become part of Dallas until 1945. This area was all rolling hills and views and unexplored potential. It was an excellent location for a significant home.
“I’ve always noticed The Buckner House because it was unlike any other house in Dallas,” said David Griffin. “Even as a six-year-old, I thought it was the coolest house.”
Griffin is best known as the founder of David Griffin & Company Realtors, and he’s always had a keen eye for real estate. His dad used to own the Shamrock Hotel at Buckner and Interstate 30, so the family would drive down Buckner Boulevard two or three times a week to see him and pass by this memorable estate.
“From a mature perspective, this house has that same presence like that iconic shot in the film Giant, when Rock Hudson and Elizabeth Taylor arrive at Riata because it is totally unlike any other house in Dallas,” Griffin said. “Our own Gatsbys built homes like this, and few of them have survived. When people build extraordinary things, they become a part of the fabric of who we were, where we’ve been, and the dreams of the people of that era.”
So, you see how important it is that someone who understands and honors not only the history of Dallas and the story of this home but also understands the property tax incentives that come with preservation has the honor and opportunity to love it back into that grand estate it once was.
Stephanie Connelly of the Brent King Group has The Buckner House at 1425 N. Buckner Blvd. offered for sale at $3.45 million.
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Thank you for including the shout out for Vizcaya in Miami. Vizcaya Museum and Gardens is now 106 years old. James Deering moved into Vizcaya in December 1916. Our gardens are celebrating their centennial this year, 2022, because they took an additional 4 years to finish after Mr. Deering moved in. Your readers can learn more at http://www.vizcaya.org.
Such a grand old estate. I hope to see her brought back to her former glory.
Gorgeous home and have admired it my entire life. Finally had the opportunity to view it this summer and was amazed at the craftsmanship and detail in this home. Looking forward to seeing it shine again as a beacon to preserving East Dallas.
I have loved and wondered about this beautiful home for decades. Hope it is bought and restored and continues to be treasured for many years to come. Thank you for telling us all about this beauty
What a fabulous house! The place is such a gem that I hope it will be restored and loved once again. I want that top hat tile in MY house….hmmm, it gives me an idea to perk up the foyer…
You are so welcome Charlotte! Vizcaya is one of the most amazing properties in the world and should inspire everyone to value preservation.
Beth, it’s truly a magnificent estate and just requires a smart individual that understands what can be accomplished here. People do not understand the significant property tax abatements that exist for these historic properties. Just because something looks like it has depreciated in value does not mean it has. The opposite is almost always true for historic properties.
Ed, we all do. So much is being lost and this property really just needs some TLC.
Becky, indeed. That is exactly what this home could be, a beacon in East Dallas! Well said!
I was always curious about this house…thanks for sharing its story and the accompanying photos…you can close your eyes and just imagine how grand this home was! Hope the right buyer come along to restore her former beauty.
This article is stretching real hard to make us care about a dilapidated abandoned property that has no history, architectural significance, or importance. If you want to see it restored put up the money and do it. Otherwise please let this raccoon habitat and the land it sits on be developed and provide more hosing for an area that needs it.
Gosh, YIMBY, Why the sour grape attitude? You don’t have to care about it, but plenty of people do. I feel like you may have read but did not actually fully take to heart what I wrote. Yes, it has significance. It’s a one-of-a-kind property. The fact that it has been neglected is not a big issue, as stated by leading preservation architect Norman Alston who knows quite a bit more than me…. or you. Importance is in the eye of the beholder. If you are a preservation-minded person, it’s important. The entire reason for the post is to educate and to hopefully bring in a wider audience, so perhaps that a suitable buyer CAN be found and restore it. To your point of creating more housing here. This is a tough sell to raze and build multi-family. It’s not a brilliant location for that. By the way, when I was there, I did not notice any raccoons : )
Unless I missed it, you forgot to mention that this house was the style and name inspiration for Casa Linda shopping center. Or that’s what I’ve been told anyway.
Hi Bill, I don’t mention all the rumors unless I have an authoritative source. Considering this was a prominent style at the time, it’s not surprising that not only Casa Linda, but also Highland Park Village shopping centers were built in this style. I’m not sure what you mean by the name was the inspiration. I found no name for this house in all of my research. The area was not named Casa Linda when this home was built. It was called Rheinhardt ( hence the elementary school) Please let me know if you have resources that are reliable, and I’ll be happy to follow up with them. You can reach me at [email protected]
At the time it was built Buckner was probably a dirt road, maybe even brick. I am not sure when the railroad first came through Reinhardt though the town was about 2 miles from the house on what is now Zacha road.
The old bank, school, bowling alley & this house had similar brick & mortar so I guess it was brought in on the railroad, in the 20’s the mortar was a type of lyme concrete, a lost technology, not like the low quality mortar used today.
I took a walk around this house in the 70’s, but don’t remember much except there were a grove of cedar trees in the front. I was going to go walk around it again a few years ago though about 50 -100 mexican immigrants were camped out there; they were trying to squat in every vacant house in that area.
At one time I could have bought this house for 90,000 but I could not afford it then, I have always loved this house, though the area is overpopulated now. Some greedy realtor will most likely try to make it to a pathetic strip mall since the technology is lost to restore it correctly.
Jess,thanks so much for your comment and thoughts. A preservation architect, visited the property recently and said there is no reason it cannot be restored. Dallas has some of the best preservationists in America, who could definitely restore it with appropriate methods today. This land is not zoned for commercial use, so there is no fear of it becoming a strip mall. I have never thought of this area as overpopulated. The house sits on 4 acres and with the right landscaping, it would be very private. I agree it was most likely a dirt road as this was farmland when the house was built. It was a deep dive to find out what I did and I’m hoping more people who have memories of this home will come forward and share them.
Thank you for unveiling some of the mystery behind this prominent property. I pass it daily during my commute from Lakewood to Kaufman County, and I always wonder… who built the house? Was it John Maxwell? I believe it’s slightly older than the DeGoyler estate at the arboretum. We know the stories behind the DeGoyler’s pursuit of designing and building that home; yet, there are very few articles out there on this Buckner manse, and it still seems enshrouded in mystery, even after your article. The story seems lost to time. Does anyone out there know anything of the family that first built this gem in the rough? Was it once part of a larger estate or farm that was gradually broken up into smaller parcels? When I first saw the “for sale” sign out front, I immediately felt the dread fall to the pit of my stomach that it would inevitably be razed by a developer and replaced with distastefully designed townhomes whose aesthetics would affront the neighborhood, shun the property’s historic significance, and be given a vanity name; because that is what Dallas does best… time and time again. It is a pity this house is too far to be absorbed by the arboretum. It’s a sitting duck, being the largest and most expensive house in neighborhood alongside a very busy road, and it’s not quite lavish enough to be it’s own mini version of a Vizcaya of Dallas. If the neighbors on either side of the property ever sell, then I’ve a feeling zoning can change if the pockets are deep enough. It’s a matter of finding a developer who cares about history, or an individual with deep pockets who’d actually like to live there and possess a desire to create a legacy property. In recent years, I still can’t believe a developer, with overseas investors who don’t have their hearts vested in the city, was allowed to so easily raze one of the last remaining grand homes with a carriage house on a block near live oak and fitzugh. It still seems unconscionable. Some of the greatest cities of the world embrace history, but yet we seem all to eager to raze and renew while forgetting our foundations all for profit…because the bottom line trumps any enduring or intrinsic legacy (no pun intended). A world class city needs to learn to balance and reconcile its past with its present to prosper, right Mr Yimby? Hopefully this grand dame without a proper name will soon find a buyer before the deterioration, like it’s history, becomes too far gone.
Thanks for your thoughtful comment Mark. There are a few things that make it difficult to find out the builder or architect. There are very few people around that remember anything about this property. Most have passed on. The neighborhood was not named Casa Linda back then, so when I discovered the original name, a bit more information popped up, but not much. I hold out hope that the story will be passed along to someone that knows of the original owners and might be able to tell us more. It. is a property that should be landmarked, preserved, and restored. How wonderful if it were to become an asset for Dallas and the land turned into a park for the neighborhood with this as the centerpiece, much like the DeGolyer.
Karen Eubank, I remember this house. Passed it many times growing up in Casa Linda/Casa View/ Lochwood area in the 50s and 60s. You mentioned wanting to find people who know the history of the area. My Facebook friend and Bryan Adams High School Class of 1969 classmate, Beverly Brown Orris, was the granddaughter of Carl Brown, who built Casa Linda. She kept meticulous historical records of everything Casa Linda. Although Beverly passed away a couple of years ago, her daughter Raine Devries has gathered everything her mom had on the area. Raine is on Facebook and would probably be glad to share with you.
Thank you Jeanne! This is exciting information. I’ll reach out. We are still hoping the buyer will choose history over quick profit and keep the house as a part of whatever development they decide to surround it with.
As a young, new comer to the area, even I can agree with all of the comments and hopes about preservation to this unique property. I have often wondered the story when passing by and believe that’s what our surroundings should do – promote curiosity and interest. I would hate to see this space gulped up by the all too familiar mass produced spec home or townhomes/apartments. Thank you for such a great article on this amazing property!
I would love to have for a veteran home for veteran to live in that serve and need a place to stay.Big enough to have rehab center on property.
“The Spanish-style house on Buckner” – that looks a lot like the house a friend of my husband’s said his grandparents used to own. Their last name was Loving -Loving Street in Old East Dallas between Winstead & La Vista was named after them. This friend’s name was Mark Loving & he owned White Rock Automotive on Garland Road. This has been about 14-15 years ago. If I’m remembering the right house & if he still owns White Rock Auto, maybe he could give you some info
This showed up on Facebook 12/14/2023. Have there been any updates since the August story?
Hi Carol,
See this article: https://eececaff8b.nxcli.io/2023/12/12/the-long-vacant-mediterranean-mansion-on-buckner-boulevard-just-went-contingent/
I have passed by this house for years. I often take my daughter by and say one day you can buy mommy this house and she always says yes mommy. I will get that house for you when I grow up. I love that house. It’s my dream house.
I too dreamt of living in this home as a young kid passing by multiple times a day when we lived in Casa Linda! I was always craning my neck to catch a glimpse of that tower through the hedges, just imagining the amazing view and what secrets the house below held!
Oh to see it restored by someone with the vision and courage to do so!
They demolished it today!