Built in 1876 for the family of Elizabeth and John Robinson, Sr., this two-and-half-story farm house is fine example of the Second Empire style of architecture coupled with Italianate detailing. Located within the original 1839 Austin town plan draw by Edwin Waller, it is in close proximity to the house built by the locally prominent Bremond family (three blocks east). It shares stylistic similarities with the Bremond house, now preserved as the Bremond Block Historic District. Three of John and Elizabeth Robinson's children married into the Bremond family. The Robinson's son, Eugene, purchased the house from the other Robinson heirs in 1902. Between 1909 and 1912 he had it moved fifty feet north of its original site to make room for another structure. The house was purchased in 1928 by Joe and Bridget Macken, in whose family it remained until 1983. Both John Robinson and Joe Macken were Austin community leaders, serving at different times as chief of the volunteer fire department and city alderman. Prominent features of the l-plan Robinson-Macken house include projecting bay windows with classical detailing, fine milled wood elements, dormer windows, and a mansard roof. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark- 1986 [2nd plaque] Chartered in Itasca in 1904, the Presbyterian Children's Home and Service Agency purchased this property in 1990 for executive offices.
Robinson-Macken House
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Robinson-Macken House is a historical marker in Austin, Travis County, dedicated in 1986. It is one of 320 historical markers documented in Travis County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 591 historic sites cataloged across the county.
The site sits at 30.2713, -97.7491 near Austin. The nearest cataloged historic site is McNeal Home (historical marker), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Gilfillan House, Joseph and Mary Robinson Martin House, and Emma West Flats.
This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5453004309. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.
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