La Colombe d’Or is one of the last mansions on Montrose Avenue.
Designed by Texas architect Alfred C. Finn (1883 - 19645), this house was built in 1923 as a private residence for the family of Walter W. Fondren (1877 - 1939), one of the founders of Humble oil & Refining Company, precursor of ExxonMobil. The mansion is built in the prairie school style, the impressive structure reflects the wealth and influence of its original owner, prominent features include symmetrical massing of bays, dormers, and chimneys; tile roof; and sullivanesque friezes on the entry bay and chimney caps.
In 1979, the Zimmermans transformed it into Houston’s bespoke hospitality experience. For four decades, La Colombe d’Or played host to a who’s-who of politicians, celebrities, globetrotting guests and Houstonians. 2021 marks its reimagination as an art-filled ode to Montrose fusing history and modernity.
La Colombe d’or was recorded a Texas Historic Landmark in 1989
When he first opened La Colombe d’Or in 1980, Steve Zimmerman was inspired by the iconic French auberge of the same name. “It was a hangout for artists in the twenties and thirties, and they traded paintings for food and a place to stay, and they all hung out,” he says about the South of France location. “When I first discovered it in 1967, all the paintings of the artists were on the wall: Chagall, Matisse, Picasso, Léger, Braque. And so then I opened this,” he says, gesturing at the mansion’s art-covered walls, “I really wanted to pay homage because it was in the art area.” The area he’s referring to is Montrose, long and safe haven for Houston’s creative set—once dubbed “the strangest neighborhood in Texas” in an early issue of Texas Monthly.
Molly Glentzer Houston Chronicle 09.29.202
