Dodson House

The Dodson House's Beginnings

The Dodsons were married in 1917 in their hometown of Malakoff, Texas but less than a year later, Bill was in Europe fighting in WWI, and Maude was in Malakoff, pregnant with the couple’s only child, Smith. After the war, the Dodsons moved to Dallas with Bill’s war buddies, Adam Davidson and Roy McKee. After the move, Bill began to dabble in the oil business and real estate. He and Maude purchased homes, fixed them up and sold them for profit. Eventually, Bill left real estate to focus his energies on the oil industry while Maude stayed home to garden and take care of her family.

In 1927, Adam Davidson purchased the Gilbert House and surrounding land - which today is roughly the area between Ford Road, the Park’s eastern border, and Denton Drive, south of Farmers Branch Lane, the Park’s western border. Davidson’s fortunes shifted during the Great Depression, forcing him to sell his Farmers Branch property to M.D. McKee, who in 1937 sold it to his brother, Roy McKee and William Dodson. When Maude refused to live in the 1856 Gilbert House, she and Bill set about building their first home together while Roy and Winona McKee renovated the Gilbert House. 

Building a New Home

Ross Faulkner built The Dodson house in 1937 for William and Maude Dodson. He was a long-time friend of the Dodsons and in the construction business. He was the principal builder of the house and built it based on specifications provided to him by Maude. By the winter of 1937, the Dodsons had moved into their new house and furnished it with pieces that would remain in the house long after the Dodson House became part of the Historical Park. In 1986, 90-year-old Maude recalled that Bill  always did most of the buying of furniture and pictures and things he liked. I let him because I didn’t mind and he had such marvelous taste.  When completed, the four acres the Dodsons owned just west of the Roy McKee home contained the 1 ½ story Dodson House, a garage and a grill house reportedly built by members of the W.P.A.

The original location of the house was approximately 200 feet to the southwest of its present-day location. By 1942, the Dodsons realized the mistake of building so close to a flood-prone creek and recruited the help of friends and neighbors to move their home to higher ground. They moved the house and garage, built a new grill house and added a sunroom.

Keeping Farmers Branch a Discreet City

In 1946 when Dallas planned to annex the unincorporated Farmers Branch community, William Dodson and friends Oran and Truett Good, Thomas Reeder and Roy McKee, formulated a petition for Farmers Branch incorporation and obtained 38 signatures, 18 more than necessary to call an election. Due to his efforts to save Farmers Branch from being added to Big D, citizens elected William Dodson the first Mayor of Farmers Branch. He served in that role from 1946-1948. Many of the early planning meetings and three of the first Council meetings were held at the Dodson House.

In the City's formative years, there were no city employees, so Councilmen had to take care of city business after working a full day at a regular job. The community raised money for a Fire Station and City Hall. Before a City Hall was built in 1948, the City held meetings at various locations, including the Dodson House, the Depot, the Methodist Church and the Masonic Lodge.

Purchase and Restoration

The City of Farmers Branch purchased the Dodson House in 1981 from Maude Dodson but did not take possession until 1983. In 1989, the house underwent a major restoration. The restoration included a new foundation, repairs to the interior and exterior and modernization of the bath and kitchen to accommodate wedding receptions and meetings.

In 1990, the garage and well-house received similar restoration. The garage is currently used as a Museum Store. Kirk Schmidt from Boy Scout Troop 713 restored the well-house as his Eagle Scout service project.

In 2001, the Dodson House underwent an exterior restoration, entailing replacement and repainting of much of the original siding. The appearance of the Dodson House is now indistinguishable from early photographs of the home.

Today the Dodson House serves a variety of functions. The offices of the Historical Park are upstairs while the downstairs is regularly used for meetings, receptions and group tours. Farmers Branch has also changed, growing from a population of 752 in 1946 to over 27,000 today – a lasting legacy to William Dodson and his goal of creating one of the finest cities in North Texas.