Hyde Park

Advertised in 1892 as "The most fashionable part of the wealthiest and most aristocratic ward in the city", Hyde Park was Austin's first planned suburb. Encompassing an area bordered by the present streets of Guadalupe, 38th, Duval, and 45th, it was promoted by Monroe M. Shipe (1847-1924), President of the Austin Rapid Transit Railway Co. and the M.K.&T. Land and Town Co. Shipe arranged for an electric streetcar line to run from Congress avenue to Hyde Park. He built a lake and pavilion for recreation and had the city's first moonlight tower erected at the corner of Speedway and 41st Street. He also built the first Hyde Park school and by 1893 forty homes had been built in the neighborhood. Among the area's illustrious early residents, whose homes still remain, were sculptress Elisabet Ney; Swiss woodcarver Peter Mansbendel; and horticulturist F.T. Ramsey. By the early 1900s the large Victorian homes in the neighborhood were being joined by smaller bungalows. The lake was drained and the pavilion was razed. Hyde Park was within the city limits of Austin by the 1930s and the streetcar ceased operation in the 1940s. Renewed interest in the 1970s resulted in revitalization of the neighborhood. (1989)

Hyde Park is a historical marker in Austin, Travis County, dedicated in 1989. It is one of 336 historical markers documented in Travis County in the Texas Historical Commission Atlas, among 641 historic sites cataloged across the county.

The site sits at 30.3065, -97.7295 near Austin. The nearest cataloged historic site is Hodnette House (historical marker), about under a tenth of a mile away. Others within a short drive include Kopperl House, Elisabet Ney, and Elisabet Ney Home.

This record corresponds to Texas Historical Commission Atlas #5507014424. Use the map below for its exact position and turn-by-turn directions.