 "Photo: Rebecca Moore")
Plans are in the works for the historic Dillow House to make a comeback after a decade in disrepair.
Wesleyan President Dr. Harold Jeffcoat said the university intends to renovate the dilapidated house, located near the intersection of Vaughn and Collard streets, for use by the community as a business incubation center.
Incubation centers serve to grow start-up businesses.
“It will be staffed by the university,” Jeffcoat said. “Hopefully we will be able to place students in our business school to do something in the order of paid internships in the business incubation center so they can have some hands-on experience and also work with members of the community.”
Jeffcoat said the incubation center will establish itself on the first floor, reserving the second story for offices of community development businesses he hopes will come to southeast Fort Worth. Site preparation is currently underway, he said, and modifications will be made to install an elevator.
“We’re really looking forward to it,” Jeffcoat said. “It’s a beautiful facility. It’s a throwback to the kind of architecture that was, if not prevalent, certainly was available to families at the turn of the century.”
Innovative Developers Inc., a commercial development and construction firm, will donate its services to help rebuild the Wesleyan landmark as part of celebrating more than 40 years in business.
“We are fortunate to be in a position to offer this gift,” said Glen Hahn, president of IDI, to the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. “We are a small business, too, and applaud Wesleyan’s desire to use the property as a business center.”
The original Dillow House was constructed in 1912 by early settlers of the Polytechnic Community back before it was officially considered a part of Fort Worth.
“Upon its founding, the community’s growth was centered around Texas Wesleyan University,” said Louis Sherwood, university archivist and cataloguing librarian, in a 2008 Rambler article.
Samuel Selkirk Dillow established Polytechnic’s first grocery store in 1892, one year after the creation of Texas Wesleyan University (known as Polytechnic College at the time), and built his first house about a year later. According to Quentin McGown, past president of the Wesleyan alumni association and Fort Worth historian, the Dillows were one of the more affluent families of the community, as well as the biggest-hearted.
“Mr. Dillow was known to loan his delivery mules and horses to the volunteer fire department when they were needed,” he said.
Ironically, in 1911 Dillow’s first house burned down and he rebuilt what is now the Dillow House.
The Dillow House was donated to Wesleyan by Samuel’s daughter, Audrey Dillow, in 1979.
The university renovated the building in 1982 and was sometimes used by the alumni association.
In the ‘90s, the house became a popular alumni headquarters but as other facilities became available, the house’s popularity faded.
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