The Aldredge House turned 100 in 2017 and is recognized as the best preserved residential example of early 20th-century Dallas architecture.The home is located at 5500 Swiss Avenue in East Dallas.
The financial & civic leaders of the early 1900’s made their homes in the luxurious new residential development known as Munger Place. The first of its kind in Texas, the deed-restricted neighborhood was envisioned by Robert S. Munger reflecting the bold spirit that made the city what it is today. The beautiful mansions along Swiss Avenue are a celebration of that spirit. Aldredge House was originally built for William J. Lewis as a wedding gift for his bride Willie Newbury, however they lived in the house for only one year. It was purchased in 1921 by George and Rena Munger Aldredge, one of Dallas’ most celebrated power couples. Mr. Aldredge was a prominent Dallas banker and his wife, Rena, was daughter of Stephen I. Munger, who ran the Munger family’s cotton gin business in Dallas, and niece of Robert S. Munger. Mr. and Mrs. Aldredge lived in the home for more than 50 years.
The Aldredge House, which has been preserved inside and out, is one of the finest examples of the city’s rich and colorful history. The House & Rena Aldredge played a key role in the creation of the Swiss Avenue Historic District by providing a preview of what the neighborhood would become today. This magnificent grande dame is designated as a Texas Historic Landmark and is on the National Register of Historic Places.
The woodwork and carvings (both stone and wood) were executed by Swiss carver Peter Mansbendel. The iron work was executed by prominent Dallas Decorative Iron worker Henry Potter of Potter Art Metal Studios, Inc.. For four generations, over a span of 90 years, the Crest of the Potter family has been the inspiration of the finest metal artisans in the Southwest. Richard Potter Jr. carries on the legacy of extreme metalwork left to him by his grandfather Henry Potter, who opened the business in 1920 when his lantern-making hobby outgrew his backyard. Potter Art Metal Studios, Inc. of Dallas has designed and hand-wrought artistic metal products in iron, bronze, brass and aluminum, which now grace thousands of homes and businesses throughout the United States.
In the early 1970s, when Rena Munger Aldredge was seeking a non-profit organization to permanently preserve her home and to maintain it as a welcoming part of the Dallas community, she chose the Dallas County Medical Society Alliance & Foundation. At that time the Alliance was searching for a home, under the leadership of its president Lindalyn Adams, one of the most respected preservationists in Dallas. Since receiving it as a gift in 1975, the Alliance has carefully restored and preserved Aldredge House as its home, shared it with other non-profits and members of the community, and made it available for a limited number of special events.