Crouch-Perkins House

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Crouch-Perkins House in Collin County. Now settle in, because this one's about a house that's been turning heads for well over a hundred years. Some buildings just have that quality; you drive past and you slow down without quite knowing why.

The Crouch-Perkins House is one of those buildings. It was built in 1887 for Joe H. and Clara Letson Crouch, and from the very first nail it was meant to make an impression. The style is Queen Anne architecture, which means whoever was drawing up those plans was not in any mood for modesty.

We're talking asymmetrical massing of gables, and if you're hearing that phrase for the first time, just picture a roofline that refuses to repeat itself. There's a turret. There's roof details that demand your attention.

And wrapping the whole rambling wood frame residence is a porch that goes around and around like it has nowhere better to be. But here's what really sets this place apart: the milled wood details. Intricate shingled gable ends.

This was craftsmanship done the long way, the hard way, the right way. Somebody took their time. The Crouches called it home until 1906, when the house was sold to F.

Dudley Perkins. Then in 1920 it was acquired by the Martin Moses Family, and so it passed through hands; each family inheriting not just walls and a roof but all those gables, that turret, every last milled detail still holding its own against the years. That's the thing about a house built with that kind of intention.

It tends to outlast everyone who doubted it.

What the marker says

A fine example of Queen Anne architecture, this home was built in 1887 for Joe H. and Clara Letson Crouch. It was sold in 1906 to F. Dudley Perkins and in 1920 was acquired by the Martin Moses Family. Prominent features of the rambling wood frame residence include its asymmetrical massing of gables, turret, roof details, and wraparound porch. Of particular note are the many fine milled wood details and intricate shingled gable ends. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1989***