DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it — and it's worth tellin' right. There's a house sitting in Tarrant County that has a way of making people stop and look twice. It was built by a man named William Reeves, and William Reeves was not a man who did things halfway.
Prominent businessman, philanthropist — the kind of fellow a town remembers. He had this home built for himself and his wife, Mattie Hosea, in 1907 and 1908. Not rushed, not cutting corners.
A proper home for a proper life. Now, what did William Reeves do when he wasn't building houses? He served as President of Reeves Investments.
And if that weren't enough, he was the President and the founder of the First Fort Worth Bank and Trust. Founder. He didn't just walk into a bank — he built one.
So when this man set out to build a home, you can bet the architecture was going to say something. And it does. The Reeves house carries the characteristics of two styles — Neo-Classical Revival and Queen Anne — and somehow it wears them both like they were always meant to go together.
Step up toward the entrance and the first thing that greets you is a round pavilion. Then those wrap-around porches, lined with Doric columns, pulling your eye all the way around the house. It's the kind of place that doesn't shout.
It doesn't have to. William Reeves, Mattie Hosea, and a house built in 1907 and 1908 that is still standing here, still making people stop, still making people look. Some things are just built to last.
What the marker says
Prominent businessman and philanthropist William Reeves built this home for himself and his wife, Mattie Hosea, in 1907-08. He served as President of Reeves Investments and was President and founder of the First Fort Worth Bank and Trust. The Reeves house exhibits characteristics of the Neo-Classical Revival and Queen Anne styles of architecture. Prominent features include the round pavilion at the entrance and the wrap-around porches with Doric columns.