Step inside 5 storied residences on this year's Swiss Avenue Home Tour

One of Dallas' most beloved Mother's Day traditions, the 46th annual Swiss Avenue Historic District Home Tour [https://www.sahd.org/home-tour-1] will open doors to five storied residences over Mother’s Day weekend, May 11-12. "This weekend-long tribute to Dallas' historic past will feature five of the city's most fabulous early 20th century homes and, on Saturday only, an historic Gothic sanctuary built by noted architect, C.D. Hill," the organization says in a release. "The homes on tour this year represent a diverse variety of the early 20th century's most popular architectural styles, including a romantic Spanish Revival; an Italianate Mediterranean Villa; a pristine Mission Revival; a Prairie Foursquare with unique Georgian influences; and a Progressive Style Prairie Foursquare." In addition to the home tour, the event will feature an open-air art fair, vintage auto display, children’s activity area with a kid-sized railroad, live entertainment, a speakers’ series, free horse-drawn carriage rides, complimentary air-conditioned mini-coaches, freshly prepared food, ice-cold beverages, and much more. A special Mother's Day brunch will be served in Savage Park with a live jazz ensemble on Sunday. Advance reservations are suggested. Tickets to the tour are $30 in advance and $35 during the event. Children 12 and under are admitted free. To purchase tickets, visit www.sahd.org [https://www.sahd.org] or participating local retailers, through 6 pm May 10. Here's a closer look at the homes on the 2019 tour, with descriptions provided by the organization. 5314 Swiss Ave. Owners: Drs. Michelle Nichols and Gregory DePrisco Year Built: 1916 This majestic Mediterranean Villa was built in 1916 by Hal Thomson at a cost of $25,489.61 for E.R. Brown, president of the Magnolia Oil Company, which later became Mobil Oil. Mrs. Brown instructed Thomson that she desired a house resembling an Italian Villa because she felt the style was well suited to the Dallas climate. The style is a blend of Mediterranean Villa with Georgian elements applied to an asymmetrical façade that is unusual for houses of this period. Guests enter under an arched wrought-iron and milk-glass canopy. Inside, the elegant foyer opens onto one of the most impressive stairways in the entire District. The home recently underwent an intensive, three-year renovation, including the installation of new Vermont slate roofing; a redesign of the rear landscaping to match original photos from the 1930s; and the addition of a bow window and exterior door in the kitchen to provide better access to the rear garden and expanded views.