Continental D.A.R. House

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Continental D.A.R. House in Dallas County. Now settle in, because this one starts with a world's fair and ends with something that outlasted the party by a long shot.

The year is 1936, and Texas is throwing itself a centennial birthday bash, the Texas Centennial Exposition, and nobody is showing up small. The Continental Oil Company put up the money for a building on those fairgrounds, and they handed the job to Architect W. R.

Brown. Brown did not phone it in. He designed the thing to emulate a southern colonial mansion, and the crown jewel of that design is a grandiose two-story balustrade deck held up by six columns.

Six. You walk up to that facade and it tells you something about itself before you even reach the door. Inside, during the exposition, the building served as a Texas Travel Information Bureau.

And here is the detail that would have made you weep with gratitude in a Texas summer: air conditioning. Real, working, come-on-in air conditioning, with seating for folks who just needed a moment off their feet. That building was doing the Lord's work in 1936.

Now, the exposition ends, the crowds thin out, the bunting comes down. What happens to a grand colonial mansion built for a world's fair? Well, in 1937, Continental Oil gifted it.

Handed it right over to the Jane Douglas Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution. And the Daughters have kept faith with that building ever since. Inside those columned walls they house a large collection of memorabilia, and once a year, during the State Fair of Texas, they open the doors to the public so that visitors can come in and learn about American history, education, and historic preservation.

Same building, same six columns, different kind of information bureau now. What started as a place to rest your feet has become a place to remember who you are.

What the marker says

This historic building was erected as part of Texas" Centennial Exposition of 1936. Funded by the Continental Oil Company, the building was designed by Architect W.R. Brown to emulate a southern colonial mansion, most evident in the grandiose two-story balustrade deck which is supported by six columns. During the exposition, the structure housed a Texas Travel Information Bureau and provided seating for those who wished to rest in its air-conditioned interior. The building was gifted in 1937 to the Jane Douglas Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and now houses their large collection of memorabilia. The chapter opens the building to the public annually during the State Fair of Texas, where visitors may learn about American history, education and historic preservation. RECORDED TEXAS HISTORIC LANDMARK - 2016