Andrew Jackson Hamilton was a prominent Texas politician during the nineteenth century. He was the State Attorney General and a member of the State Legislature before he was elected to US Congress in 1859. In 1865, President Andrew Johnson appointed him Provisional Governor of Texas. He also served as an Associate Justice on the Texas Supreme Court from 1867-1869 and ran for Governor in 1866 and 1869; however, he was unsuccessful. He practiced law in Austin his entire life up until his death in 1875.
The historic home was built in 1876 near Swede Hill by immigrant and stonemason Joseph Limerick, and later purchased in 1905 by John W. Frazier, an son of slaves who was a professor at Samuel Huston College. The home represents both the chapter of Austin's history where immigrants and migrants help boost the population, much of it into East Austin. Later, as a result of segregation, East Austin grew into an African American neighborhood. After John died, hhis widow, Laura Allman Frazier, operated the house as lodging for African American students and travelers because they were not allowed to stay at white hotels.
The George Washington Carver Museum is the first neighborhood museum in Austin dedicated exclusively to African American history. The museum and center are located next to a public library that was created in 1926 to serve the African American community of Austin in the era of segregation. That library became home to a small museum in 1980. A 1998 bond initiative led to the construction of the expansive museum next to the original library. The museum offers exhibits that share the experiences and contributions of African American residents. The museum is housed in a 36,000-square-foot facility with four galleries, a conference room, a classroom, studio, 134-seat theater, and archival space. The galleries feature a core exhibit on Juneteenth, a permanent exhibit on Austin's African American families, an artists’ gallery, and a children’s exhibit on African-American scientists and inventors.
In 1891, Blackshear Elementary School opened to provide free education to African American children in the area then known as Gregory Town. It was originally named School No. 3, then Gregory Town School and Gregory School. It was named after Edward Blackshear (1862-1919) in 1936. Blackshear was a nineteenth-century teacher and principal. He left Austin in 1895 to serve as head of Prairie View College.
Constructed in 1914, this building was long-known as the Administration Building for Tillotson College. The building is now Anthony and Louise Viaer Alumni Hall and part of Huston-Tillotson University, a coeducational and historically African American academic institution formed by the merger of Samuel Huston College and Tillotson College in 1952. The building was formed with concrete blocks manufactured by students in the industrial education program at Tillotson College, an educational institution which was chartered in 1877.
The German American Ladies College was constructed in 1876 and functioned for a few years as a private all-girls day school from 1877 to 1881. The college represents a period when private colleges were widespread but opportunities for higher education was generally limited to those from wealthy and middle-class families. The college also serves as a reminder of the significance of German immigration into the region and the desire of recent immigrants to create the kinds of institutions that would preserve the traditions and culture of their homeland. The college was founded by Alice Nohl and Natalie Von Schenck, and when their school closed in 1881, Anna Von Schenck Ritz maintained the home and many of her family members worked as teachers, including her daughters Helene and Maria who taught music and language courses at Austin's Stuart Female Seminary.
Founded in 1984, the Texas Music Museum celebrates the state's rich musical heritage. Its collection is comprised of artifacts, photographs, documents, reference materials, and oral histories. Genres covered are: Texas Historic and Patriotic, Country, Gospel, Classical, Cowboy, Big Band, Western Swing, Blues, Rock ‘n’ Roll, Jazz, Ragtime and Barrelhouse, Soul, and Popular, as well as Texas ethnic music, including Tejano, Czech, African American, German, and Native American. The museum is housed in the Marvin C. Griffin Building.
The Robert Irvin home, built in 1885 and located in East Austin, is unique for its T-plan design, which differed from more "boxy" houses that emerged during the late nineteenth century. The home is located in the Robertson Hill neighborhood, which enjoyed a population boom during the last few decades of the nineteenth century, largely comprised of European immigrants and African Americans.
This house was built in 1841 to be home of Alphonse Dubois de Saligny, the French Charge de'Affaires (a diplomatic representative of lower status than an ambassador) to the Republic of Texas. The house was never used for its intended purpose because the capital moved from Austin to Houston the same year. In 1848 the estate was purchased by Dr. Joseph W. Robertson, and served as his family private residence for about 90 years. It is the oldest extant frame structure in Austin. It opened as a museum in 1956.
The Rogers-Bell House stands on land formerly owned by the Joseph W. Robertson family, who resided next door at the old French Legation, Austin's oldest standing, wood structure. Hence, the area is referred to as Robertson Hill. The structure served as the home to Martin E. Rogers and his wife for nearly fifty years, followed by two notable African Americans, Lewis D. Lyons -- informally referred to as the Black Mayor of East Austin, and then Jerry Bell, who worked as the Governor Allan Shivers' chauffeur and houseman. Rogers and Lyons moved in at a time when East Austin grew into a predominantly African American neighborhood.
This Victorian home was built between 1901 and 1904. The T-plan home is named for Swedish immigrant and prominent merchant, George A. Peterson. The home's clip-cornered facade and elaborate front bay serves as a noteworthy albeit unusual variation of the T-plan style, which was highly popular in Austin around the turn of the twentieth century.
This unusual house is truly unique in Austin. It was built by Genaro P. Briones who used his skills as a bricklayer and plasterer to create the home out of reinforced concrete, on which he included tinted concrete ornamentation such as molded stones, flowers, stars, and trees. He learned of this style from Dionicio Rodgriguez, an artist from San Antonio. The house remains Briones' best and most preserved work and is great example of Texas folk architecture. It took him fourteen years to build it, from 1947-1953. He lived on the first floor (it is a duplex) with his wife until he died in 1979. It remains a private residence today but can be easily seen from the street. It is located in a heavily Hispanic neighborhood and locals call it the "Casa de Sueños" (the house of dreams).
This Tour is a Walking Tour.
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This short walk through Austin's east side includes numerous historic homes and museums as well as the Texas State Cemetery. Highlights of the tour include the Texas Music Museum, George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center, and the French Legation Museum.
