"heirloom rose" doesn't have any particular meaning except there is a mauve rose named 'Heirloom.' "Tea roses" are a group of old shrub roses that do well in the South, very different from "hybrid teas" which include florist roses.

There is a 'Barbra Streisand' mauve rose that is 6-7 years old, but it would be a poor choice for your area. Mauve hybrid tea roses generally are very disease prone, and Barbra is especially bad.

People will help identify your roses, but see the FAQ first.

PS, if you have unidentifed roses, don't reflexively chop them down in fall or spring as beginners are wont to do. Some roses don't want to be pruned much. The ones that are cut back in spring are hybrid teas and floribundas, which make stiff upright shoots 12"-30" long and may have florist-type flowers.

Historic varieties of roses that were introduced into commerce more than a hundred years ago are sometimes referred to as "heirloom." Other terms to describe these roses are "old garden roses" (OGRs), "vintage" or "antique."

There is a rose named for Elizabeth Taylor which is deep lilac pink and very fragrant. You could do a rose name search at HelpMeFind.com to see if their photos of it match the rose you saw.

This forum would be a good place to post photos of your mystery roses, and if you're sure they are old varieties, you could also post photos on the Antique Roses Forum (linked below).

Here is a link that might be useful: Antique Roses Forum