Who: Matthew Doyen.
When: October 4th.
Where: Austin, TX.
Another semester, another field trip! This would be the (at least) second time our group has invaded Austin’s city limits. During the introduction class of our first semester, we visited the state capital building and history museum. In addition, some of us went to last spring’s Preservation Texas Summit in the city’s historic Central Christian Church. Even still, we found ourselves at three new and unique historic institutions: the French Legation, the Neill-Cochran House, and the Flower Hill Foundation.
The trip started on the top of a hill in the eastern part of the city at “Austin’s oldest home.” The French Legation Museum, celebrating its 175th year of existence, is a property managed by the Daughters of the Republic of Texas (DRT). The DRT, as we learned in our Administration class, has not been doing very well lately. Formed in 1891, the organization has grown to include over seven thousand women who can all prove lineal decent of Texas’s loyal servants prior to its annexation in 1846. Their mission is preserve Texas history and achieve this by managing historic site in Austin, Galveston, and San Antonio. Recently, however, the mismanagement of their largest cash cow, the Alamo, has lost them ownership of this popular site to the state.
Still recovering from that financial and emotional blow, the DRT is attempting to right the ship with the assets that they still possess, like that of the French Legation. The French Legation dates back to 1841, two years after the city was officially incorporated, to when it was a private home for Alphonse Dubois. Less than a decade later, the Robertson family took over ownership of the house until 1940 when it was sold to the state. The DRT stepped in and opened the museum to the public in 1956. Sixty years later, the future of the museum hangs in the balance as the staff only consists of two part-time tour guides.
The DRT has hired a consultant to help with the future of the museum. After the initial study, it is apparent that the space needs to update its facilities so that it can continue to hold large events, such as concert and movies, within its beautiful gardens. The problem is that those updates were estimated at an intimidating two million dollars. Another issue the property faces is actually one of its strengths: its history. In those 175 years, the property has housed three families with most of them owning slaves. The conversation about whose story to detail in the house is still fervently ongoing between the DRT members.
The house and the gardens of the French Legation are stunning, especially with the backdrop of a fast-growing city. With potential buyers starting to make strong cases, the future of the house under the Daughters of the Republic of Texas is murky at best. There is a ton of work to be done, but the space has the potential to become a neighborhood community gathering spot where important topics can be discussed, as well as, a place where entire family can occur! Unfortunately, all we can do now is wait and see.
Written by: Matthew Doyen