Beverly-Harris House

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'm passing it along straight from the source. Now, Collin County has always had a way of tucking big stories into quiet places, and this Victorian house is no exception. The man who built it was Warren Tully Beverly, born right here in Collin County in 1857, and from the very beginning, he was somebody who knew how to find himself in interesting company.

Young Warren attended Spring Creek School and the Plano Institute, and when it came time to study law, he walked into the office of one Joseph W. Baines. Now, that name might not ring a bell at first, but hold on; because Joseph W.

Baines was the grandfather of Lyndon Baines Johnson. Beverly learned the law in that office, and he put it to use. He served as county attorney, and he climbed all the way to judge of the 59th district court.

The man had range. Then, in 1886, Warren Tully Beverly did what a man of his standing did: he built his family a Victorian house. And not just any house.

The kind of house that says something. It stood, and it kept standing. Beverly himself passed in 1903, the same year the house was sold to Louisa Kirkpatrick Harris.

And the Harris family? They were in no hurry to leave. They lived there all the way until 1960.

More than half a century under one roof; that's not just residency, that's a household becoming part of the land itself. Some houses are built for a season. This one was built for the long count.

What the marker says

Warren Tully Beverly (1857-1903) was a native of Collin County, attending Spring Creek School and Plano Institute. He studied law in the office of Joseph W. Baines, grandfather of Lyndon Baines Johnson. Beverly served as county attorney and later as judge of the 59th district court. In 1886 he built this Victorian house for his family. In 1903 it was sold to Louisa Kirkpatrick Harris. Members of the Harris family lived here until 1960. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1979***