University Preservation: University of Texas at Austin

Austin's original forty-acre central core from 1881 houses a collection of elegant early twentieth-century buildings that reflects the height of Beaux-Art urban design, and it thus remains the heart of the university. Cass Gilbert, architect of the Woolworth Building in New York and the United States Supreme Court, was responsible for the early development of the Austin campus. Gilbert's Battle Hall (1911) is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and was recently selected by the American Institute of Architects as one of America's 150 favorite buildings. Paul Cret, campus architect from 1930 to 1942, constructed twenty-one additional buildings, including the iconic Main Building and the Texas Tower. With Getty funds, the university will carry out a cultural resource survey, including a landscape inventory, in order to develop a management plan for its significant historic landscapes and structures. The project also includes graduate instruction, continuing education workshops, and the creation of an interpretive campus history.

Background


In 1881, Austin was chosen as the site of the main university, and Galveston was designated the location of the medical department. On the original "College Hill," an official ceremony began construction on what is now referred to as the old Main Building in late 1882. The university opened its doors on September 15, 1883. The old Victorian-Gothic Main Building served as the central point of the campus's 40-acre (160,000 m2) site, and was used for nearly all purposes. But by the 1930s, discussions arose about the need for new library space, and the Main Building was razed in 1934 over the objections of many students and faculty. The modern-day tower and Main Building were constructed in its place.

In 1910, George Brackenridge donated 500 acres (2.0 km2) located on the Colorado River to the university. A vote by the regents to move the campus to the donated land was met with outrage, and the land has only been used for auxiliary purposes such as graduate student housing. Part of the tract was sold in the late-1990s for luxury housing, and there are controversial proposals to sell the remainder of the tract. The Brackenridge Field Laboratory was established on 82 acres (330,000 m2) of the land in 1967.

As a result of the controversy, in 1921, the legislature appropriated $1,350,000 for the purchase of land adjacent to the main campus. But expansion was hampered by the constitutional restriction against funding the construction of buildings. With the discovery of oil on university-owned grounds in 1923, the institution was able to put its new wealth towards its general endowment fund. These savings allowed the passing of amendments to make way for bond issues in 1931 and 1947, with the latter expansion necessary from the spike in enrollment following World War II. The university built 19 permanent structures between 1950 and 1965, when it was given the right of eminent domain. With this power, the university purchased additional properties surrounding the original 40 acres (160,000 m2).The first presidential library on a university campus was dedicated on May 22, 1971 with former President Johnson, Lady Bird Johnson and then-President Richard Nixon in attendance. Constructed on the eastern side of the main campus, the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum is one of 12 presidential libraries administered by the National Archives and Records Administration.

The University of Texas has experienced a wave of new construction recently with several significant buildings. On April 30, 2006, the school opened the Blanton Museum of Art.[20] In August 2008, the AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center opened, with the hotel and conference center forming part of a new gateway to the university. Also in 2008, Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium was expanded to a seating capacity of 100,119, making it the largest stadium (by capacity) in the state of Texas.