Dolese Mansion

[ChowRunner]

Anyone know where I can find some information on this home? many years ago I was there and had seen the front porch lift up allowing access to the basement. I was telling co worker about this-- but cant find any information to confirm Im not crazy.

[USG'60]

I suspect that Peter is a member here, maybe he will confirm it.

[Pete]

This is from a 2008 Crown Heights newsletter:

"729 N.W. 38th Street
A jewel of Crown Heights, the home of Drs.
Kyle Toal and Susan Chambers was once
actually two separate homes. The western
most house was the original Dolese family
house and its east neighbor, the Lee house,
were both built in the early 1930’s. Prior
to World War II the Doleses built an addition
on the original home which was two
stories and consisted of a master bedroom
and suite on the first floor and an additional
bedroom and bathroom on the second
floor. There was also a storage facility
on the upper floor that was a cedar closet.
After the World War II, the Doleses,
who traveled extensively throughout
England and Europe, decided to expand
their house by purchasing the adjacent
Lee house. The original parts of the
Lee house that exist today are the inner
stairwell, the halls and walls around
the stairwell to the second floor and the
basement of the original Lee house. The
original front of the Lee house was maintained
along with a short portion near the
kitchen. The remainder of the exterior
walls were advanced out so that the walls
would be even with the original Dolese
house as it expanded to the east. To this
day, as you walk through the house from
the western most part to the eastern most
part, the rooms become larger.
Mr. Dolese also purchased the property
immediately behind his house with the intention
of installing a 50 meter pool in the back
yard. It has long been rumored that there is a
tunnel between the Dolese Mansion and the
purchased property on 39th Street. It never
existed! The tunnel was actually between
the Dolese and Lee homes and is still in existence
and recognizable today as the hall that
connects the two original basements.
The combined houses made a home
of approximately forty-six rooms, including
15 bathrooms. Sometime in the early
‘60’s after much of the construction had
been done, attention was then directed to
building a conservatory on the back of the
home. It was planned to be two stories,
completely enclosed and encasing a grand
staircase up to the second floor with fireplaces
in either corner. Unfortunately,
these plans were aborted after Mr. and
Mrs. Dolese divorced.
Mrs. Dolese continued to live in the
house until Drs. Toal and Chambers
purchased the property in 1997. They
have been restoring the home ever since.
Currently, they are working to complete
the initial back porch conservatory plan
by using a slightly modified version of the
original plan. The main goal is to provide
second floor access from the entry hallway
or gallery, which is an architectural
feature that has been missing since the
Dolese divorce in the early 1960’s.
The 2008 Heights Benefit Party will
again be held in this historic home and the
construction of the back porch conservatory
will be near completion. Thank you to
Drs. Toal and Chambers for opening their
unique home to host the Heights Benefit."

[adaniel]

This is probably a stupid question but I'm assuming this Dolese Mansion was owned by the gentleman who started Dolese Bros. Concrete, correct?

[USG'60]

Correct.

[rondvu]

Several months ago I great a great article along with pictures about the history of the home. I am thinking it was OKC Downtown or Nichols Hills. Perhaps if you can find a copy that would help with your curiosity. I bet the Daily Oklahoma archives will have plenty of info.