Ooh La Luxe: French-Inspired 1960s Time Capsule in Fort Worth Has a Sinatra-Worthy Den

As homes with a story go, 6917 Miramar Circle in Fort Worth has a great one — including a tie to the chicest hillbillies in Beverly Hills.

Designed and built in 1968 by builder Bearl Mathews and his interior-designer wife Bobbie Mathews, the French-style home in Ridglea Country Club Estates oozes elegance — and rightly so.

“Mother was an avid student of historical design,” say daughters Diana M. Jackson and Kimberly M. Britton. “In particular, she loved country French furnishings and architecture.”

Research was a thing with the Mathewses: They would drive up and down neighborhood streets for hours — much to the chagrin of their young children! — gathering ideas for the dream home they would eventually build. One inspiration? A French-style home in the same area, built of brick and topped with a mansard roof, a roof which has four sloping sides, each of which becomes steeper halfway down. (Architecture FYI: The earliest known mansard roof is on a 1500s part of the Louvre.)

Another inspiration? The famous Clampett mansion from The Beverly Hillbillies, the popular 1960s sitcom. The double front doors of the French-style chateau, with their lower panels in a basket-weave pattern, directly informed the double doors the Mathewses designed for their own house.

Legendary Developer of Southwest Fort Worth

The four-bedroom home, at nearly 4,000 square feet, is a study in how formal style can be balanced with family living. The Mathewses — he the founder of Bearl Mathews & Company, Inc., and she the founder of Continental Interiors — had experience in that.

“Dad played a role in the growth and development of southwest Fort Worth, including Tanglewood, Overton Park, Bellaire Park Court, and Ridglea Country Club Estates,” say the daughters. “From the 1960s to the 1980s, he built dozens of custom homes for many families, some still occupied by the next generation. He and our mother worked together to design and build beautiful, high-quality homes that would last.”

An Elegant Home With Heart

The Mathewses poured their knowledge, know-how, and hearts into 6917 Miramar Circle. Situated on a desirable corner lot, it is, indeed, brick, topped with a modified mansard roof and punctuated with tall, paned windows, some of them arched. It offers light-filled formal living and dining rooms that flank a two-story, terrazzo-floored foyer.

Elegant touches are everywhere. Just two? The dining room’s crystal chandelier and its wallpaper mural by the world-renowned firm of Albert Van Luit. From the foyer, an arched passageway leads back to the heart of the home: the wood-paneled den, with its brick fireplace, built-in bookshelves — complete with built-in vintage TV — and walk-behind wet bar. The den is the perfect place for great conversations, game nights, and movie marathons.

French doors open from the den to the fenced back lawn. The galley kitchen, breakfast nook, and laundry room are off to the left, with an ensuite bedroom to the right. A back staircase leads from the kitchen up to a billiards/game room. (Don’t miss what the Mathews sisters have to say about that, in the accompanying interview.)

Upstairs, the sizeable primary suite is set apart from the other bedrooms via a passageway that overlooks the foyer. The suite offers a spacious corner bedroom with elegant arched windows, a large private bath, and a capacious closet. Two other airy bedrooms, one with a fireplace, complete the quarters. The aforementioned game room offers built-in shelves and would be an ideal media room.

Outside, the property offers a rear terrace, flat lawns on all sides, mature trees in the back, and a long brick walkway out front — from the street, straight to those famous front doors.

Barbara Schweitzer and Thurman Schweitzer of The Schweitzer Group at Briggs Freeman Sotheby’s International Realty have listed 6917 Miramar Circle for $595,000. See photos, details, and more at briggsfreeman.com. 

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THE INSIDERS: Life at 6917 Miramar Circle, from the people who lived it

We ask sisters Diana M. Jackson and Kimberly M. Britton all about growing up in a house with French flair, Sinatra on the stereo, and a secret staircase for refrigerator raids. 

The home has such an elegant French vibe to its architecture. What was the inspiration for its style?

Dad’s houses often took the form of the brick Ranch style seen regularly during that period. However, the Miramar Circle house was a departure. Mother was an avid student of historical design and, in particular, loved country French furnishings and architecture. As to inspiration, our parents took it from many sources and spent hours — often with us in the car and to our chagrin — driving around neighborhoods to gain insights and ideas.

In this case, the inspiration for the architecture came from two sources: a lovely French house in Ridglea and The Beverly Hillbillies television show. The Ridglea home is an elegant, French-style brick structure with a mansard roofline more angled than the Miramar Circle house. Its sophisticated lines and well-executed tribute to the genre shaped the concepts for our parents’ home.

While it may seem unlikely, the set used as the front doors of The Beverly Hillbillies mansion, in the show’s closing sequence, gave inspiration for the double front doors, with their basket-weave molding on the bottom half of each door. The doors were custom designed for the Miramar Circle house when it was built. To replace the doors, in 2017, a similar basket-weave pattern was forged in the custom iron doors that now grace the front. 

What are some positives of its floor plan? 

What a great house in which to grow up. The bedrooms are spacious and full of light, and one has a fireplace. The playroom upstairs connects to two bedrooms, and its back stairway to the kitchen makes it a perfect space for growing kids. We loved having our friends for sleepovers under the pool table in the playroom — with late-night refrigerator raids facilitated by that back stairway!

One will note the intentional use of a skylight instead of windows in the playroom. This feature allows for rambunctious games of darts, wayward pool cues, and other childish antics [with no fear of broken windows].

The primary bedroom is huge, with tons of storage and room for a sitting area. We recall our parents’ late-night conversations over coffee in their pair of chairs. That bedroom is connected to the other upstairs rooms by a crosswalk, providing not only privacy but a lovely view of the two-story entry with its large chandelier.

The den, or family room, and the downstairs guest bedroom open to a roomy, fenced backyard, via handsome French doors.

The front living room is filled with sunlight each morning and is a favorite spot for reading or a quiet morning coffee. It has readily doubled as a beautiful room for a home office in recent times. Across the entryway is the serene dining room, with its vintage Albert Van Luit wallpaper mural. The room, in later years, became the primary spot for family meals. 

Where do people tend to gravitate? 

The den. It is warm and cozy, with a large brick fireplace. The half-circle wet bar is perfect for serving snacks or beverages.

What are some strong memories of living in the house? 

Christmas! Mom always decorated the house beautifully, with a 10- to 12-foot tree in the two-story entry and greenery wrapped on the stair rail. Candles in hurricane lamps lined the walk. Dad woke us on Christmas morning with the “The Christmas Waltz” cranked on the Curtis Mathes hi-fi. Stockings on the chimney mantel always held a small but special gift and Santa Claus left presents under the tree in the entry or on the fireplace in the den. These were the traditions not only when we were young but continued when the grandchildren came.

Our parents loved to entertain, not only at the holidays but sometimes spontaneously. The house lent itself to gathering. It was a common occurrence for our family to rush home after church on a Sunday night because a herd of teenagers was on the way over. Sodas, hastily prepared guacamole, salsa and chips were the fare for the evening, often followed by a rowdy game of touch football on the golf course, lit by the headlamps of the fellows’ cars. The elder teenage daughter of the house was frequently spotted in the thick of the action, wearing her false eyelashes and her sweatshirt and blocking for her cousin, Eddy Jr.  

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NEIGHBORHOODS 101: The back story of Ridglea Country Club Estates

Sisters Diana M. Jackson and Kimberly M. Britton share some firsthand memories — and some inside scoop — about the Fort Worth neighborhood that their designing mom and dad had a big part in. 

What was the neighborhood like when you lived there?

Ridglea Country Club Estates was a new development of 184 acres when our house was built by our dad, Bearl Mathews, and our interior-designer mother, Bobbie Mathews, in 1968. The championship golf course was surrounded by generous lots with newly planted trees. Recently constructed houses dotted the blocks, with open lots next door to them. At the back of the development were open fields, just perfect for off-roading on a Huffy bike! Families with young children were the primary residents in the neighborhood. 

How has it changed? 

Those empty lots are now full of houses. The trees now are old-growth, and the children of those days have gone on to adulthood and to raise their own families. Many of the original owners, like our parents, remained and new, young families have joined them. 

How was your father involved in the neighborhood’s development?

Actually, Dad played a role in the growth and development of southwest Fort Worth, including Tanglewood, Overton Park, Bellaire Park Court, and Ridglea Country Club Estates. From the 1960s to the 1980s, he built dozens of custom homes for many families, some still occupied by the next generation. He and our mother worked together to design and build beautiful, high-quality homes that would last.

Dad, however, did not start his career as a builder. He, along with most of his six brothers and his father, worked in various aspects of construction. Dad started as a painter of houses, often working late into the night to finish a job. His elder brother, Eddy Mathews, started building houses and Dad believed that he could too. He, with Mom as his partner, launched Bearl Mathews & Co., Inc., and Continental Interiors, an interior design firm. This was the day of trusted bankers and builders and $100,000 loans on a handshake.

Our dinner table was a place where business was discussed and phone calls with subcontractors happened before breakfast. We grew up watching countless concrete slabs be poured and cabinets carpentered. Summer days were spent at the Dallas Trade Mart, looking for fabrics and learning about varieties of carpet. We knew some of [our parents’] favorite subcontractors like other kids knew family friends.

Our parents were entrepreneurs before that word came into fashion. They taught us about the fortitude, courage and faith it takes to start a business and ensure its success, despite challenges and economic ups and downs.