Crozier-Sickles House
John Rufus Crozier died in 1893 leaving his widow, Nannie Crozier, to raise three daughters: Mary Annie (Mamie), Emma, and Lula. As a widow, Mrs. Crozier built this home in 1895 in Lebanon near the intersection of Preston Road and John Hickman Parkway (near the location of Richardson Bike Mart). She supervised the cultivation of her husband’s land, buying oxen for breaking the previously un-worked land. She educated her daughters at Mary Hardin-Baylor in Belton, Texas. When the St. Louis-San Francisco Railroad bypassed Lebanon in 1902, many of the families moved their homes to Frisco, but she remained in Lebanon. The 2-story home was built from lumber hauled from Jefferson, Texas where most of the lumber used in that era came from. The house was built on a foundation of bois d’arc piers and beams and two piers can be seen on the porch of the Log Cabin.
Nannie Crozier’s daughter Mamie married Charles Covington and they resided in the home with Mrs. Crozier until her death in 1938. Mamie and Charles Covington lived in the home until the death of Mr. Covington in 1955. Mamie Covington continued to live in the home until her last few years when she lived with her sister, Emma Hunt, in Garland. Mrs. Covington died in 1972. The youngest daughter, Lula, died of typhoid in 1900 before finishing her college years. The sofa and chair in the parlor on the first floor are original to home as is the double bed, dresser, and rocking chair in one of the upstairs bedrooms and were donated by the great-grandsons of Mrs. Nannie Crozier.
John and Donna Sickles purchased the home in 1977. They caught glimpses of something they called “apparitions”. These were noises in the hall outside a bedroom, catching a glimpse of a knee-high ghostly figure when entering a room or rounding a corner, seeing a small gray cat in a hallway mirror, or unidentified bumping noises. Photographs taken in the hallway were almost blank, showing only a hazy reflection, while pictures of the rest of the home were clear.
These unexplained events were more frequent while Mr. Sickles was remodeling and less frequent after that. Apparently, the apparition didn’t like the remodeling. But, did it work?
The seventh baluster from the bottom of the staircase is upside down, apparently a custom at the time to keep the ghosts downstairs.
John and Donna Sickles donated the home to the City of Frisco for use in the Heritage Center.
The Crozier-Sickles House has a bridal suite available for brides to use as they’re preparing for the ceremony.
If you are interested in reserving the bridal suite please visit the Rentals page on the City of Frisco website.