The original home on this lot was a two-story frame house built in 1906 by Charles H. DeWaide. In 1907 the house was purchased by Elizabeth & Thomas J. Stewart.

Thomas was a native of southwest Arkansas. In 1899 Stewart and Elizabeth, moved to Oklahoma Territory, where they built lumber yards in El Reno, Shawnee, Hinton, Thomas, Cordell, Sayre, and Eric, all located on the Rock Island line. By 1907, with his yards prospering during the boom in western Oklahoma, he moved to Oklahoma City and bought the frame house at 15th and Shartel. When they moved in, the family consisted of Thomas, age 48, Elizabeth, age 40, son Barney, age 19, son Will, age 17, daughter Maude, age 14, son Thomas, Jr., age 8, and a 20-year-old female live-in employee from Scotland.

In 1929 the Stewarts razed the original structure and built this two-story brick home. Designed by architect W.H. Shoemaker and built by Ray Smiser, the style is Mediterranean with a tiled roof, symmetrically arranged façade, and arched openings.

Inside, red gum wood was used for the woodwork, doors and central staircase. The entire dining room ceiling is also of gum, in paneling squares that feature raised, carved medallions. A huge stone wood-burning fireplace is the focal point of the large living room and a large sitting room extends the entire width of the house on the west. The light fixtures in the home are original, made of copper, brass and crystal.

Stewart died in 1939, but his wife remained until 1958, when the house was sold to Dr. and Mrs. William L. Bond for $35,000. Bond, a physician, tore out a wall and remodeled the kitchen, glassed-in the back porch, installed central heat and air, and converted the carriage house to a children’s playroom.

In 1975 the home was purchased by Dr. Geoffrey & Jeriann Altschuler. A native of Australia, Dr. Altshuler moved to the United States to complete post doctoral work at Dartmouth and take a post as pediatric pathologist at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital. While there, he met and married his wife, Jerriann. Dr. Altshuler later joined the staff at Children’s Hospital of Oklahoma.

The Altshulers completely renovated and re-decorated the home and furnished it with many family pieces they brought with them from Cincinnati.

They also built a clay tennis court on the large acreage. In addition to their work on the house, they both dedicated time to various projects in Heritage Hills ranging from home tours and streetlights to a book about the history of Heritage Hills. The Altshulers featured their home on the 1978 and 1984 Home Tours.

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