Walter P. and Meck Allen House

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll pass it right along to you. Now, some houses just sit there. They hold their space, keep the rain off, and that's enough.

But every now and then a house shows up that seems to say something about the people who built it, and this one on the Kaufman County landscape has quite a bit to say. This is the story of the Walter P. and Meck Allen House. Pull up a chair, because we're going back to 1893.

That's the year Walter Payne Allen, a Rusk County native born in 1870, married America Peyroux Cartwright; she went by Meck; who hailed from San Augustine, born in 1874. Two different corners of East Texas, one new household. Walter was a banker.

Not just any banker; he became an organizer and later president of American National Bank. Beyond that, he served as city alderman and commissioner, taking responsibility for utility services, and he was instrumental in steering the transition to a city commission form of government. The man had his hands in a lot of local businesses too.

And then, here's the detail that stops you cold: during World War II, Walter Allen worked to get a Royal Air Force training center established at Terrell. A Royal Air Force training center. In Texas.

That's a long reach for a local banker, and he made it happen. Now, after all those years of civic work and business building and wartime maneuvering, what did Walter and Meck Allen do in 1928? They built themselves a house worthy of the telling.

Tudor Revival, designed by the Dallas firm of Fooshee and Cheek. We're talking half-timbering, decorative masonry work, a jetty (that's an overhanging second floor, held up by brackets, reaching out over the world below like it's got something to say). Walter Allen, who had spent decades organizing and serving and reaching further than most men thought to reach, finally built something that just stands there and speaks for itself.

He lived until 1943. Meck lived until 1959. And the house?

It's still standing.

What the marker says

In 1893, Rusk County native Walter Payne Allen (1870-1943) wed America "Meck" Peyroux Cartwright (1874-1959), a native of San Augustine. A banker, Walter was an organizer and later president of American National Bank. He served as city alderman and commissioner, responsible for utility services, and was instrumental in the transition to a city commission form of government. Active in many local businesses, he also worked to get a Royal Air Force training center at Terrell during World War II. The Allens built this Tudor Revival house in 1928. Designed by the Dallas firm of Fooshee and Cheek, it features half-timbering, decorative masonry work and a jetty, and overhanging second floor supported by brackets. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2004