Former Site of Head House

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'm gonna let it breathe a little. Lucy Frances Jeffries was born in Virginia in 1840, and when she married Henry Head and set about raisin' four children, something happened that tends to happen in a busy kitchen: she found out she was gifted. Not just competent.

Gifted. The kind of cook people travel for. And as it turned out, people did exactly that.

Starting in 1891, Mrs. Head opened a boarding house right here on this site in Dallas, a large home that became something of a legend on the Texas landscape. She ran it for twenty-seven years, clear through 1918, and what came out of that kitchen was the stuff of genuine reputation: fried chicken, popovers, cakes, pies, and something called ambrosia that I suspect required no explanation to anyone who ever tasted it.

Now here's the thing about fame: it needs a messenger. In those days, the messengers were commercial travelers, called drummers, men who crisscrossed the country sellin' goods and collectin' stories. They spread the name of Head House nationally.

Nationally. From a home kitchen in Dallas, Texas. Crowds thronged the place, the marker says, especially on Sundays and on great occasions.

Honeymooners found their way there too, which tells you something about the kind of warmth a place like that carries. Lucy Frances Jeffries Head lived to be ninety-one years old, born 1840, died 1931; long enough to know what she'd built meant something to people. The house itself kept the Head name after she was gone, right up until it closed and was demolished in 1936.

The building's gone. But the marker's here. And now you know why.

What the marker says

Former Site of the Head House Lucy Frances Jeffries (1840 - 1931) of Virginia married Henry Head, and while bringing up their four children discovered her talent for cooking. From 1891 to 1918, in her large home on this site, Mrs. Head operated a boarding house famous for good food such as fried chicken, popovers, cakes, pies, and ambrosia. Commercial travelers ("drummers") spread the fame of Head House nationally. Crowds thronged here, especially on Sundays and great occasions. The hostelry also attracted many honeymooners. It retained the Head name until it closed and was demolished in 1936.