Hezikiah Haskell House

Located at 1703 Waterston Avenue, the Hezikiah Haskell House is a visible reminder of Clarksville’s historic and cultural roots and of the struggles of the formerly enslaved men and women who created Clarksville as an oasis of freedom, community and dignity.

The House is the oldest documented residence in the Clarksville National Register Historic District. It’s also been landmarked by the State of Texas and the City of Austin. In addition, the House is included in the federal Department of the Interior’s Reconstruction Era National Historic Network. The Network features sites and programs affiliated with the Reconstruction Era and develops educational materials and digital media to help individuals learn more about this important period in our nation’s history.

The architectural style of the House, which is typical of the rudimentary homes built in early Clarksville, is best described as Vernacular because Clarksville residents at the time were very poor and could not afford to be concerned with aesthetics. Therefore, the House was constructed with available materials using traditional skills and built with features that had specific practical purposes. For example, it was built using wood from the cedar and mesquite trees growing in Clarksville; its roof was made from rough-hewn cedar shingle shakes; and the house had double separated front doors so that its residents could make money by taking in boarders. Also, to save money, the House was built with just one wall.

The House sits in its original location and maintains a high degree of physical integrity. For example, its original floor plan is unaltered; a few of the original windows remain; and some of the square nails used to construct the House can be seen in the exterior walls. Also, a crude light brick fireplace, original to the House, is held together with sand mortar.

The Early History of the House

In about 1875, Peter Tucker and his wife bought land from Clara and Max Maas, two white real estate speculators. The Tuckers paid $100 for the property and built a home there sometime between 1879 and 1887. That home is now known as the Haskell House. Before buying the land, Tucker had worked as a slave at Woodlawn, the plantation owned by former Texas Governor Elisha Pease and his wife Lucadia. Nothing is known about Betty Tucker.

The Tuckers later sold their home to Mary and Edwin Smith, who raised their family there. Mary, whose brother was Charles Clark, the founder of Clarksville, helped establish the Sweet Home Missionary Baptist Church shortly after the Clarksville community began. Because the community could not afford to build a church building right away, early church services were held in the Smith’s home. According to oral history, Mary Smith used to stand on her porch every morning and sing the Black spiritual Give Me Jesus and other Clarksville women would join her in song.

Like many other Clarksville residents, the Smiths took in boarders to help make ends meet. This is why the House, and some other old Clarksville homes, has two separated front doors -- one door for the family and the other for the boarder. It’s assumed that the family would hang a sheet or blanket to separate the owner’s living space from their boarder’s.

One of the Smith’s boarders was Hezikiah "Kye" Haskell. A former Union soldier from Baltimore, Haskell came to Texas as a Buffalo Soldier and was a member of an all-Black cavalry regiment posted on the western frontier during the 1870s and 1880s. While living as a boarder at the house Haskell and the Smith’s daughter Catherine (Kate) fell in love and later married.

In 1892, the Smiths deeded the north half of their homestead to their daughter and moved into a new home that they built on the south half of the lot, across the street from Sweet Home.

Kye and Catherine raised their family in the House, building two additions at the back to accommodate their growing family. Neither addition remains.

Their son, Hezikiah Haskell, Jr. lived in the House until shortly before his death in 1976, at the age of 79. He is buried at Evergreen Cemetery. After his death, the Haskell family deeded the property to the City of Austin. The Parks and Recreation Department (PARD) repaired the House, added a bathroom, counter area and sink at the back, and operated a Senior Lunch Program there for several years during the late 1980s.

After the Lunch Program at the House ended, the CCDC entered into a Use Agreement with PARD. The agreement entitles the CCDC to operate the House as a museum about Clarksville’s history and as a community event and meeting space that can be rented by individuals and small groups. The agreement also requires the CCDC to maintain the House. The organization’s most recent rehabilitation of the House was recognized by Preservation Austin in 2022. The grounds of the House feature the Clarksville Community Garden as well as the Hezikiah Haskell House Heritage Garden. The Heritage Garden represents some of the crops freedmen and women as well as their descendants cultivated in Clarksville and offers an opportunity for visitors to reflect on the legacies of self-reliance in freedom colonies like Clarksville. The Heritage Garden was established using funds donated by the Austin Parks Foundation and the Clarksville Community Garden, and the Austin Parks and Recreation Department provided signage.