In 1889 John Reed claimed a 160-acre homestead and built a small two-story farmhouse on the lot at 700 NW 15th. In 1895, Dr. James A. Ryan paid John Reed $4000 for the homestead.

Dr. Ryan became Chief Surgeon at St. Anthony’s Hospital, helped organize the Oklahoma Medical Association and was active in civic affairs. The two-story farmhouse was later torn down. In 1902, Dr. Ryan sold the farm to Anton Classen for $25,000.

In 1903 the lot was purchased for $1400 by Charles D. Alan, a buyer with the Lion Store who built a two-story white clapboard Victorian Colonial home. In 1914, Dr. Edmund Ferguson and his wife Marie, purchased the home for $8000.

Dr. Ferguson, a native of Canada, grew up in Ontario then attended medical school in Detroit, Michigan, where he graduated in 1895. He practiced in both Texas and New York, then moved to Oklahoma City in 1904 to establish his practice. He also served as professor of ophthalmology at the University of Oklahoma School of Medicine.

After buying the house on 15th, the Fergusons began extensive remodeling projects. They added several feet to the west side which allowed them to change the staircase and add a large landing. They added a morning room with French doors and a bay window to the dining room. In the rear of the house, they built a closet and a bathroom. They also built a third-floor addition with three rooms, a small dressing room, and a closet. Most of the changes were completed by 1925.

In 1941, the Ferguson’s son, Dr. Gordon Ferguson, sold the house to Dr. O. Alton and Dorothy Watson, parents of five-year-old and Ann Sheridan, four-year-old Marcia Moseley, and one-month-old O. Alton, Jr. Ann Sheridan and Marcia both would later raise their families in homes in the neighborhood.

Dr. Watson, a native of Guymon, Oklahoma, was an ophthalmologist who completed his MD at the University of Oklahoma School of Medicine in 1929, before undertaking post-graduate studies at the University of Pennsylvania. He opened a practice of ophthalmology and otolaryngology in Oklahoma City in 1934 and became Chief of Otolaryngology at the University of Oklahoma School of Medicine.

Dorothy was a native of Chickasha and the grandniece of Dr. James A. Ryan, who bought the homestead in 1895.

The Watsons made many improvements to the home. They converted the old kitchen into a library with rich walnut paneling, added five fireplace mantels, and built a screened in porch. In 1954 they designed a formal garden with terraces and brick retaining walls. They also re-decorated and filled the home with antiques.

The Watsons also served their neighborhood soon after moving in the home, Dr. Watson was recruited by Edgar Van Cleef to join a small group in stopping commercial intrusions. They eventually formed the West Highland Parked Neighborhood Association, one of the three areas melted to form Heritage Hills in 1969. Dr. Watson was an original board member of Historical Preservation, Inc. (HPI) and Mrs. Watson helped organize the Women’s Committee of HPI and served as president of the group the first three years. For 55 years they were instrumental in helping to preserve the neighborhood. Their home was featured on the very first Heritage Hills Home Tour in 1967 and again in 1982.

In 1996, the Watson’s traded houses with longtime family friends David and Angela Reynolds. David, owner of Red Eagle Construction, embraced the challenge of modernizing the pre-statehood house while maintaining the elegance and charm of the original Virginia Colonial.

David raised the core of the house over 3 inches and lowered the basement a foot to sit solidly on steel columns and beams. He expanded the kitchen, installed central heat and air, and reconfigured the third floor. He even had special knives made to meticulously restore the home’s woodwork. The Reynolds added a breakfast room off the renovated kitchen which incorporated the original decorative Dutch tiles. They raised the attic ceiling and transformed the raw attic space into a children’s playroom complete with performance stage and marble-topped juice bar. They featured the home on the 2000 Heritage Hills Home Tour.

In 2003, Dr. Ben and Robbie White bought the house and moved in with their three young children. The house was completely restored with a newly renovated kitchen and master bath, a family room, and three car garage with apartment. The Whites also renovated the second-floor hallway and bath and added new wood floors to the master bedroom. They featured their home on the 2016 Heritage Hills Home Tour.

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