As a social service institution, Juliette Fowler Homes Inc. has been part of the East Dallas community since 1911. Its roots go back to the mid-1800s.
Jefferson Peak moved his family to Dallas from Kentucky in 1855. He bought a large tract of land east of town and farmed for a number of years. Later, he sold parcels to other settlers coming to Dallas, laying out streets and naming many of them for his sons and daughters.
Peak, Carroll, Junius, Worth and Victor are familiar East Dallas streets named in honor of Peak family members.
One of his daughters, Juliette Peak Fowler, became interested in establishing a social service institution after the sudden deaths of her husband and their two infant children. She visited such facilities in other parts of the country to get ideas.
She bought about 15 acres of land in East Dallas as a site for a home for orphans and elderly widows, but she died in 1889 before she could begin her facility. Her will specified that the land and a trust fund, which ultimately totaled $75,000, were to be used to start such a home.
Sarah Peak Harwood, Juliette’s sister and executrix, secured a charter from the State of Texas in 1892, and in 1911, the first building was opened.
Today, Juliette Fowler Homes Inc. continues to serve the young and elderly on its campus, bounded by Fulton, Reiger, Columbia and Eastside. Currently, about 300 people live in three Fowler facilities.
Pearl Nordan Care Center provides long-term care for 120 elderly residents. Fowler Christian Apartments offers 144 units for people on limited incomes who are at least 62 years of age or for people with limited mobility in need of a handicap-accessible apartment. The Children, Youth and Family facility serves as many as 26 emotionally-disturbed adolescents and also offers outpatient counseling.
Because of her interest in using her assets to assist others, Juliette Peak Fowler has been described as the first philanthropist of Dallas by the Dallas Morning News.
