TOUR HOMES - 2026

On the 5th day of September, 1861, on the courthouse steps in Nacogdoches County, Texas, a public sale was held to sell Lot 7, Block 43, for $25; Lot 8 in Block 43, for $20, and Lot 9 in Block 43 for $20 in the City of Jefferson, Texas. This was done in order to settle the Estate of Richard Parmlee, deceased, by one Richard Moon. These were sold to J. B. Dotson as the highest bidder on the 4th day of October, 1861.The deed was recorded in the deed records of Marion county on the 14th day of November, 1861.  On these lots were built two houses, The Dotson-King House and The Dotson Home Place.  It is unknown as to which residence actually became the primary residence of L. V. “Lucy VanDuzen Culbertson Dotson and her husband James B. Dotson, and their baby daughter, Lula. Mrs. Dotson’s family all had homes East of this property.  Her brother, David Browning Culberson, was a lawyer and served as a Texas legislator, serving terms both before and after the Civil War. He helped defend Abe Rothschild in the famous Diamond Bessie Murder Trial. His son and L.V.’s nephew, Charles Allen Culberson, became Governor of Texas from 1895-1899 and after served in the U.S. Senate. 

Hopes and dreams for their lives and that of their 16 month old daughter, Lula, would be short-lived.  In January of 1863, J. B. joined Company K of the 7th Texas Infantry.  He died in the battle of Raymond, Mississippi on May 12, 1863.  Ms. Dotson supported herself and her daughter as a seamstress.  Lula married a son of the George Todd’s who lived in a Victorian two story home adjacent to First Baptist Church on Polk Street.  Lula died on 9/8/1879 at the age of 19 from an unknown illness while expecting their first child.  “L.V.” never remarried and lived on Walnut Street until May, 1905 when she sold this house to Minnie and James King.  She moved into the home of Lula’s in-laws, the George Todd’s, as a border and died there in 1924. She was known by many as “Aunt Dotty”.  On her Civil War Pension application, she stated that she earned her living as a seamstress and by the generosity of friends.

The Kings were relatives of Marion/Cass county pioneers.  Both were born and reared around the Prospect Community.  Mr. King worked for Kirkland Grocery, located at 120 Lafayette Street, later buying and operating it as King Groc ery.  After Mr. King retired, his son, Louis and wife, Tatum, operated the store until 1948 when the Franklin family purchased the grocery.

The original Dotson home consisted of three rooms and an outside kitchen with a couple of out buildings on the property.  Deed records show the construction of the home in early 1863.  The 1873 map of Jefferson shows the home and 2 out-buildings.  The Kings significantly enlarged the house to nine rooms to accommodate their five children.  After the children married and left home, the Kings remodeled the home to accommodate boarders.  The living room and dining room were converted into bedrooms, and one large bathroom was divided to create two small ones.  Several outside doors were added for access to the porch for the boarders to come and go without coming in to the main house.  Oilfield workers and others rented rooms and enjoyed family meals in the main hall from the mid-1930’s to the mid-1950’s.  For the young women boarders, they were not rented rooms without outside doors and were carefully monitored and abided by strict rules established by Mrs. King.  

In 1965, the house was sold by Mrs. King to Mary Hitt.  She continued to rent rooms for several more years.  She used the front two rooms to sell homemade jelly, pecans, craft items and plants.  The west side of the front porch was converted to a green house.  One of Mrs. Hitt’s renters for many years was a local grocer, Nookie Baldwin.  Mr. Baldwin raised night crawler worms for fishing in the back yard. Some of their ancestors still reside in the flower beds at the back of the house. In 1996, the house was sold to the current owner, Sharon Bonner-Goolsby.  In the process of renovation, several interesting items were found.  In the linen closet stuck to the wallpaper was a “King Candy” sticker.  Also, someone caught young Louis carving his initials in the original 1863 pantry, and those unfinished initials are still there today.

As two owners after Mrs. Dotson, were merchants, money storage was handled in two bedroom closets in the home. One bedroom closet had a money slot cut into a plank in the floor.  Money was pushed through the slot dropping into a container attached to the bottom side of the floor under the house.  In the closet in Mr. and Mrs. King’s bedroom, a wooden board section slid up and down where he put his money bags from the grocery store each evening.

An original electrical outlet still remains in the kitchen, and an original telephone connection remains in the back hall. The kitchen pantry is still original to the 1863 construction.

Many stories were told by the King daughters, Mrs. Winnie Liverman, Mrs. Frances Liverman, and Mrs. Daisy Wheeler, their lifelong friend, Miss Anna “Baby” Shaw, of growing up in the house.  As a child, Daisy loved to climb a large pecan tree on the west side of the house so she could sit atop the house.  The last major flood in 1946 saw water within an inch of the porch.  Mr. and Mrs. King usually slept on a screened porch at the back of the house. Current restoration of the house was done with much input from the King daughters. Ms. Daisy lived to see the house completed before she passed away in 2005 at the age of 99. Current owner Sharon Goolsby looks forward to your visit.

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The Beard House was built about 1860 by Noble A. Birge and wife, Ana Sophia Birge in the Greek Revival architectural style with exterior trim and columns inspired by the interior grand salons of steamboats, Noble A. Birge was a prominent Jefferson citizen and business man. Birge served in the Confederacy during the Civil War, returning to Jefferson after the War to become involved in the mercantile and drayage business and served in public office. He promoted both waterborne and rail transportation in Jefferson. In 1874 Birge moved to Sherman, Texas where he became successful in several businesses, including, real-estate development. Birge descendants reside in Sherman today.

After Birge sold the house it was acquired by the family of Ana Beard in 1878, who occupied the house until 1895. During the Beard ownership the house became commonly known as the Beard House. In 1899 the Beard House was acquired by the family of M. E. Goetzman, who owned it until 1955.

In 1955 the house was acquired by Estella May Fonville Peters, who invested in its restoration and constructed the brick and ornamental iron fence bordering Vale and Henderson Streets. Mrs. Peters, also, enclosed the back porch which includes the house’s original water well. Mrs. Peters also, acquired in 1955 the Excelsior Hotel, performing its major restoration and placed on tour both the Beard House and Excelsior Hotel in the Jefferson Historical Pilgrimage.

In 1961 the Beard House was acquired by Dr. Jesse M. DeWare III and Virginia Battle DeWare who made it home for their four children and continued the restoration.

In 2007 the current owners, William R. DeWare and Rebecca Wallace DeWare purchased the house and have continued its restoration, improvement and expansion. The owner is a fifth-generation Jefferson resident.

Over the last seventy years the Beard House has opened numerous occasions during the Pilgrimage Tour and Candlelight Tour. The house features period furnishings, including an 1840’s era plantation bed from the Fullilove Plantation on the Red River in Caddo Parish, Louisiana, an American Empire full teaster acanthus leaf rope bed from South Carolina, a collection of copper cooking utensils and many heirlooms. Much of the furnishings were collected by the DeWare family and Rowell family ancestors who came to Jefferson by covered wagon in 1856 from Dadeville, Alabama. Now owned by Bill & Becky DeWare, the home continues to undergo thoughtful restoration, maintaining its historic character with period furnishings & family heirlooms while frequently opening to the public during local historic tours.

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This three‑story Colonial home was built by Frederick Augustus Schluter, one of Jefferson’s earliest settlers. The Schluter family lived next door from the start of construction in 1850 until the home was completed in 1856. Positioned prominently at the corner of Line and Taylor Streets, the site was intentionally chosen for its elevated ground, safely above the reach of river flooding. In 1971, the property earned a place on the National Register of Historic Places through the Department of the Interior, as well as recognition from the Texas Historical Commission.

The Schluter House still showcases its original double front doors, windows, and old‑growth Longleaf pine floors throughout. The functioning pocket doors and distinctive fireplaces remain standout features. Thoughtfully curated interiors blend nature‑inspired wallpapers and mid‑Victorian color palettes with the home’s 1856 architecture and furnishings, creating a seamless tapestry between past and present.

With just five owners across its 170‑year history, Restless Spirit Ministries and the Limoges family invite you into a space that continues to embody elegance and the enduring beauty of time.. 

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True to Neoclassical architecture, Old Mulberry Inn was blueprinted to vintage perfection of the Greek revival era. The main house is stylized after the northern Louisiana plantation homesteads of the 19th century. Its architecture features porch-steps on every side, heart-pine floors gracing the common areas, various types of wood details throughout, a spacious veranda overlooking a generous lawn, and a cupola (also known as the lantern) rising thirty feet above the home from the great hall. An artist rendered sky caps the lantern, which filters light into the center of the home in the day and radiates a soft glow at night. The 14-room, 7-bath, main-house is 5,500 square feet and complemented by two adjacent cottages, circa 1860.

This homestead is situated on a tree-covered 1.4 acres of Quality Hill in the Historical District of Jefferson. The property brings to life Alexander Smith’s famous quote, “Trees are your best antiques.” The acreage has towering pecan trees, massive Bois D’Arcs, and of course, the ancient mulberry for which the homestead is named. This venerable tree is over two hundred years old and is currently being verified as possibly the oldest of its kind in Texas.

Old Mulberry Inn has been featured in The New York Times, Southern Living, the L.A.Times Magazine, Houston Chronicle, and the travel sections of other major Texas newspapers.

Purchasing the home in January of 2017, Glen and Lana Manchester hope to highlight more of Jefferson’s rich history. Buying surrounding properties, the Manchester’s are working to improve one of the main arteries to historical downtown Jefferson.

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