You can now drink up a piece of history in Waco. A grand 135-year-old home built by one of the men who introduced Dr Pepper to the world just went on the market for $1.39 million.
The 4,724-square-foot Folk Victorian-style estate, at 1503 Washington Ave., contains four bedrooms and four bathrooms. Wade Morrison built the home in 1885. That’s the same year Morrison’s Old Corner Drug Store in Waco initially sold Dr Pepper at its soda fountain.
Charles Alderton, a pharmacist at the store, invented the 23-flavor concoction. Morrison came up with the name Dr Pepper, and he co-founded the company that first bottled the soda. The drink made its big-time debut in 1904 at the World’s Fair in St. Louis.
While Dr Pepper is now part of Plano-based beverage conglomerate Keurig Dr Pepper, the Morrison estate stands as a reminder of the soda’s glory days in Waco.
While he owned the house, Christian singer and songwriter David Crowder restored it in the early 2000s before relocating to Nashville and then Atlanta. The current owners have maintained the home’s “architectural integrity,” according to the listing for the estate.
The house is within three miles of the Baylor University campus, the Dr Pepper Museum, and Chip and Joanna Gaines’ Magnolia home goods store.
Adrianna Walker of Waco’s Camille Johnson Realtors, who has the listing, touts these features of the home:
- Kitchen with Viking appliances, stained concrete countertops, an oversized island, and cabinets that rise to the top of the 12-foot ceiling.
- Formal dining room that looks out onto a private garden patio.
- Two downstairs living spaces with views of immaculately manicured lawns.
- Upstairs sunroom with wall-to-wall windows affording a view of the 22-story ALICO Building, the tallest structure in Waco.
- California-style pool and spa.
- Backyard cabana with a fireplace and TV.
- One-bedroom guesthouse housed in a barn that served as Crowder’s recording studio. A gym is located on the second level.
- Outbuilding with two-car garage and upstairs game room.
“You have to see this home to truly understand how special it is,” the listing boasts.
The home was built in 1885.
