Belo, Alfred Horatio, House - Dallas, TX
Posted by: 
WalksfarTX
N 32° 47.277 W 096° 47.903
14S E 706177 N 3629925
Belo's wife Nettie (Ennis) (d. 1913) bought a home here in 1888 from A.W. Childress. It was replaced in the 1890s by this Classical Revival residence. Designed by Herbert M. Greene, it reflects influences of the Belo family home in North Carolina.
Waymark Code: WM13WJM
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 03/02/2021
Views: 3
NRHP Nomination Form"The A. H. Belo residence is "the only surviving example of many palatial houses that once stood on Ross Avenue in downtown Dallas. Built for the founder of the Dallas Morning News. Possibly the first example of the Neoclassical style in Dallas, the mansion was conceived at a time when other prominent citizens were building in the Victorian style.
A pedimented portico supported by six fluted Corinthian columns dominates the south facade. Arranged in groups of three at both corners of the portico, the columns display slender proportions which are characteristic of the Neoclassical Revival style. A heavy entablature embellished with dentils and modillions graces each of the four facades. An entrance portal with fanlight and sidelights also displays unusually slender proportions for a residence of this scale . On either side o f this doorway are small leaded-glass windows which illuminate the entrance vestibule beyond. Above this portal is a heavy balcony with turned balusters supported by decorative consoles. A tripartite doorway opens onto this balcony from the second floor sitting room. Window sashes in the house were changed in 1926 when the Sparkman family leased the property . Originally graced with one large pane of glass per sash, the upper sash is now divided into nine lights. Windows on either side of the portico on the south facade are arranged in a tripartite configuration with the center section matching the double windows above, and flanked by narrow windows of the same height on either side .
The west facade is dominated by a Porte Cochere. Projecting into this space is a semicircular bay, a twin of which projects from the east facade. Capping this composition is a long gable, the center of which is dominated by a Palladian window. A slate roof covers the house and is pierced with dormers on either side of the portico and interior chimneys with corbeled caps at the crest .The east facade originally was the reverse duplication of the west side, but an addition in the 1930's to accommodate funeral home facilities altered this wall. At the back of the house, or north facade, is the kitchen and servant's ell. Two stories in height, this section duplicates the proportions and detailing of the central section."