Where Do You Live? Old West Austin? Clarksville? What’s the Difference?

Reprinted from the Summer 2025 OWANA Owl newsletter

Where Do You Live? Old West Austin? Clarksville? What’s the Difference?
By Mary Reed, CCDC Volunteer and Former CCDC Board President
 
There is some confusion over the distinction between Clarksville and Old West Austin. Some people believe that all of Old West Austin is Clarksville -- that the two are synonymous. But that’s not the case! Some of you live in Old West Austin and some of you live in Clarksville and Old West Austin.
 
Here’s the Difference 
Clarksville is one of Austin’s oldest neighborhoods and considerably older than the rest of Old West Austin. Located in the west end of that neighborhood, historic Clarksville, which is on the National Register of Historic Places, is bounded by the MoPac access road, West 10th, Waterston Avenue (the south side, not the north and only up to Charlotte Street), West 12th and the west side of West Lynn. Residents of this area can become members of the Clarksville Community Development Corporation (CCDC), the neighborhood organization that represents Clarksville residents, and vote in its elections. Also, Patterson, Theresa, Frances, Augusta and Jennie are considered to be in “Greater Clarksville” and residents on these streets are also eligible to become CCDC members and vote in its elections even though they live outside the Clarksville NRHD.
 
A Brief Clarksville History Lesson 
Clarksville was established in 1871 by Charles Clark, a formerly enslaved man. To create the community, Clark bought two acres of land from former Confederate General Nathan Shelly. The land was far from Austin and is where the 1600 block of West 10th is now. An early Texas Freedom Colony, Clark envisioned the isolated community as a refuge for formerly enslaved people – a place where they could reunite with their family and friends, direct their own lives, and freely practice their religion.
 
Over time, the city of Austin grew west and the community of Clarksville eventually became part of Austin. But for decades after that, Clarksville remained a majority Black neighborhood and was ignored by the city. Eventually however, mostly white and more affluent neighborhoods began to surround Clarksville, and with that came a desire to get rid of the neighborhood’s Black population so white people could claim the area for themselves.
 
The 1928 City of Austin Comprehensive Plan is a particularly shameful result of this development. Adopted by the City Council, the Plan created a “Negro District” on the east side and the city pressured Clarksville residents into moving there by denying them paved streets, sewers, street lighting, sidewalks, much-needed flood control measures, etc. -- public services that the white residents in the neighborhoods surrounding Clarksville as well as residents of the “Negro District” benefited from. Adding insult to injury, banks refused to lend money to Clarksville residents who needed loans to help them repair or enlarge their homes. Despite these hardships, the majority of Clarksville residents stayed put. Afterall, Clarksville was their home and they had deep ancestral roots there.
 
In the early 1970s, the city took another stab at destroying Clarksville with a plan to build a cross-town expressway whose route would run directly through the heart of the neighborhood and wipe it out. The residents of Clarksville fought the highway and ultimately, it was not built. And by the way, Clarksville had prior experience with the damaging impact of a highway. When the construction of MoPac began in the late 1960s, it destroyed one-third of the neighborhood, displacing many families. Most of them could not find a new place to live in what remained of their neighborhood and had to move out of Clarksville.
 
Then, starting in the 1980s the gentrification of Clarksville began, a process that accelerated during the 1990s. During this process, many realtors and developers marketed all of Old West Austin as “Clarksville.” Perhaps they believed that word had more cachet than “Old West Austin,” which is ironic given how much time and energy had previously been expended on trying to get rid of Clarksville. The result however is that today, many Old West Austin residents people – especially newcomers – who live outside Clarksville’s boundaries, mistakenly believe they live in Clarksville.
 
The CCDC & OWANA 
The CCDC was founded in 1978 in response to threats to Clarksville’s people, homes and history. The organization established an affordable housing program, which is one of the only such programs in the nation operating in an affluent neighborhood. It also began hosting events to help maintain Clarksville’s traditional sense of community, and worked to preserve Clarksville’s rich history, including the definition of where Clarksville begins and ends because the neighborhood’s geographic boundaries are a part of that history. This effort continues today.
 
Many members of the CCDC are also OWANA members. In addition, one of the CCDC’s board members sits on the OWANA Steering Committee and another is a member of OWANA’s Zoning Committee, the two organizations co-host an annual Christmas caroling party and support one another’s events. Together, the CCDC and OWANA work to ensure that all of Old West Austin remains a wonderful place to live.
 
To Learn More About Clarksville
There are many ways to learn more about the Clarksville neighborhood. For example:
 
• Visit the CCDC’s website. It’s full of interesting history and you’ll find information about upcoming CCDC events on the site’s Community page.
 
• Watch some videos. Go here to watch a fascinating video filmed and produced by UT. It was shot in Clarksville just before the construction of MoPac began and illustrates the impact of the city’s neglect on the neighborhood. And, here is another documentary video, entitled Haskell House and the Story of Clarksville. The film chronicles the life of Hezekiah Haskell and his descendants and also tells the story of Clarksville. It was commissioned by the Historic Preservation and Tourism Department within the City of Austin's Parks and Recreation Department and was produced and directed by former new anchor Judy Maggio.
 
• Visit the Hezikiah Haskell House at 1705 Waterston Avenue. The CCDC operates the House as a museum about Clarksville’s people and history. The House is open on the 2nd and 4th Sunday of the month from from 1-4, January-November, and on some Saturdays, also from 1-4. Visit the Community page of the CCDC’s website for information about the Saturday schedule.
 
• Contact the CCDC at clarksvillecdc@gmail.com to schedule a walking tour through Clarksville.