Historic Neighborhood Profiles : Travis Heights
By Ben Needles
Travis Heights is a centrally located neighborhood in one of Austins most esteemed zip codes, 78704. The neighborhoods proximity to downtown and Lady Bird Lake makes it a desirable place to live, and the new Emma Long Center for the Performing Arts is just a couple of blocks north of the area, right across Barton Springs Road. Auditorium Shores, a lovely outdoor amphitheater which hosts festivals and concerts is adjacent to the Long Center, and is also a short walk from the Travis Heights neighborhood.

Easy access to the Lady Bird Lake hike and bike trails as well as access to the Zilker greenbelt is also advantageous for residents of the area. The neighborhood dates to the turn of the century, with dramatic growth during the 1920s and 1030s, and many historic homes from the period are still standing.

One of the neighborhoods most influential and well-known residents was John Henry Faulk, and his boyhood home was on the spot where Green Pastures, a beautiful, historic restaurant with gorgeous foliage and grounds is currently situated. Another well known previous resident, Charles Whitman, also grew up in the Travis Heights neighborhood, and went on to infamy as the Tower sniper in the 1960s.

The neighborhood boundaries are generally considered to be South Lamar, South Congress, West Oltorf, and Barton Springs Road, in the heart of south-central Austin. The largest institutional development in the neighborhood is the Texas School for the Deaf, which encompasses 65 acres of land and was established in 1856, and is surrounded by South Congress, South First, Barton Springs Road and Elizabeth Street.

Due to the Colorado Rivers frequent floods prior to the construction of dams which help control the river waters, the land was very inexpensive, thus a very diverse group of citizens populated the area, and many churches cater to a specific ethnic group, such as the St. Anne African Methodist-Episcopal Church and the nearby Goodwill Baptist Church, both of which are on Newton Street. A small group of Hispanic families settled in the neighborhood around 1940, when the San Jose Catholic Church was founded at the corner of Mary Street and South Third Street.

The stone mission-style church is currently called Holy Name Of Mary Orthodox Church, and the Church still has a flourishing parish, many of whom are descendants of the original settlers.

Since the recent