Joseph B. Haden was born to William F. Haden & Mary Jane Perkins in Springfield, Missouri on 28 July 1859. His parents were both from Kentucky & they married in Missouri in 1843. In 1869, after two years in Grayson County and three years in what is now Delta County, William Haden and his family moved to Fannin County where they finally settled to remain. William F. Haden died 8 September 1880 in Ladonia. Joseph married Miss Elizabeth F. Holderness on July 4, 1882. The Hadens owned a local mercantile.

The Haden family owned the home until the 1960's when Maurice, the last of J.B. & Elizabeth's four children passed away. Then, the Cook family purchased it. The Cooks lived here on weekends for several years and were the owners at the time it was placed on the Texas Historical Commission in 1966. Then, Van & Doris Daugherty bought the home & raised thier children in the Haden House. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. Alas, if you read the information on the house at the National Register website noting the original fixtures & decor, it is sad to say, the original furnishings were sold in an estate sale in October of 1994 when the home was sold to the Davis family. Both markers (photo of markers) are mounted near the front door. Due to an out of state job, the Davis family rented the property for a while in 2000. In Dec 2000, the Ryan family moved in. The Ryans now need to move closer to family on the east coast. Since they moved in, they have installed CH/A upstairs, repaired the porch, and painted the house white. My apologies for the lack of recent photos.

This is how the house looked in 1896 as an architectural toddler. The photo was given to the current owners by one of the Haden grandchildren.

The Haden House is an exquisite two story, frame Queen Anne with composition roof (1990-1992 according to owners previous to us), stained glass, original/period light fixtures (MBR light, foyer chandelier, cupola light, dining room chandelier, kitchen light, middle BR upstairs lite), original floor coverings, 4 bedrooms, 2 baths, large rooms, high ceilings, & 3 gas fireplaces (MBR/upstairs front BR) with gorgeous mantels. There is reason to believe there is a 4th FP in the kitchen behind the paneling because of the third chimney location. The kitchen was remodeled around the late 1930's to early 1940's - the paneling was most likely installed at that time.

The front exterior doors feature transom windows above the doors. There is a wrap-around porch on the front of the house with a balcony upstairs (also in the front). The back porch is screened & houses the original well. There are pocket doors between the dining room & parlor. Plumbing & electricals were updated before 1994. There is a paved circular drive with easy access to master bedroom and a gravel/dirt drive leading to the circa 1910 detached garage.

This lovely home has 0.95 acre treed lot (view #1, view #2 view #3, view #4, & view #5 - removing downed trees) in a small town setting about an hour northeast of the Dallas area.

Down & dirty description (aka the basics of living in this old house)

• HOUSE TYPE: Victorian
• CONDITION: Good
• FLOORS: Hardwood, some covered in carpet, some bare, some rugs
• TRIM/FINISH: Wood (some painted)
• ANTIQUE LIGHTING: original converted gas/oil fixtures (MBR, cupola, upstairs BR), chandeliers (dining room, foyer - not original to house), original ceiling fans in master BR & upstairs middle BR
• SQ.FT.: 3219
• CLOSEST HYDRANT: less than 200 feet
• LOT SIZE: 0.95 acres
• YR BUILT: 1894, re-roofed/rewired/replumbed/leveled in ~1990 by Daughertys (previous owners 1960-1994)
• TAXES: look up tax rolls - address is 603 West Bonham
• TOTAL ROOMS: 9
• BEDROOMS: 4 or 5 - when we bought it, it was marketed as a 5 BR, but the "5th" BR access is off the MBR and makes a lovely office or nursery
• FULL BATHS: 2 - claw footed tubs in both baths, one tub has shower assembly & another view
• FIREPLACES: 3 - upstairs front BR & Master BR gas log FPs, 1 gas coal grate FP
• SMOKE DETECTORS & FIRE EXTINGUSHERS: we installed smoke detectors in every room & 3 fire extinguishers on each floor
• HEAT TYPE: gas heaters (most are antique, but have been checked yearly for safety)
• HEAT SOURCE: natural gas everywhere except master bath - it's electric
• COOLING SOURCE: CH/A up stairs, gas space heaters downstairs, no AC downstairs, however, the house remains surprisingly cool with open doors - it was built in a day of no AC & the builders took advantages of Mother Nature's cooling breezes
• WATER SOURCE: city/well (city is primary - current owners have not used the well)
• SEWER TYPE: city, open ditch running by paved street for water run-off after heavy rains
• GARAGES: 1 car detached - built in 1910, building receipt is still in house items
• UTILITY INFORMATION:
  • electric (sole source) - TXU
  • natural gas (sole source) - TXU
  • telephone (choice) - Southwestern Bell or Sage Telecom - our phone service was with SWB
  • piped water (sole source) - City of Ladonia
  • internet access (choice) - Koyote, NETO, NETexas - our ISP is NETO
  • cable (no real choice - dishes do not work well - we had a RCA DSS & sold it because the reception was so poor & went back to cable) - Friendship Cable (800-999-6845) - acquired by Douglas cable - I don't know of a web presence for them
• APPLIANCES TO REMAIN: Refrigerator, stove
• POOL: Gunite in-ground diving pool with waterfall: winter/concrete statuary/fountains/picnic table
• OUTBUILDINGS: 8'X10" storage shed