Guadalupe Street
Guadalupe Street’s long history contributes to the unique legacy and spirit of Austin. The portion of Guadalupe Street referred to as The Drag goes right along the heart of the University of Texas, and like the rest of this street, it is sprinkled with unique shops, restaurants and businesses.
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La larga historia de Guadalupe Street contribuye al legado y al espíritu únicos de Austin. La porción de la calle Guadalupe conoce como El Drag pasa justo por el centro de la Universidad de Texas, y como el resto de esta calle, se cubre con tiendas exclusivas, restaurantes y comercios.
Shops along Guadalupe Street today. Source: 787 Realty
History
The corridor along Guadalupe Street is on the traditional and ancestral homelands of the Tonkawa, the Apache, the Ysleta del sur Pueblo, the Lipan Apache Tribe, the Texas Band of Yaqui Indians, the Coahuitlecan and all other tribes not explicitly stated. Additionally, we would like to acknowledge and pay respects to the many other tribes, Indigenous Peoples, and communities who have been or have become a part of these lands and territories now known as Texas.
In 1839, the second president of the Republic of Texas, President Mirabeau Lamar, commissioned Edwin Waller to lead the development of Austin. Guadalupe Street was among the north-south, river-named streets included as part of Austin’s original street grid.
View of the UT campus from the corner of 21st and Guadalupe from winter 1900. Note the old main building on top of the hill where the Tower stands today and the old men's dorm to the right, known as "B.Hall”. Source: UT History Center
Listen to Rowena Houghton-Dasch discuss the history of the Neill-Cochran House, a residence built in 1855 on an 18-acre plot northwest of the city, what is now at San Gabriel and 24th Street. On the property, a structure has been identified as the only remaining slave quarters in the city.
Source: Neill-Cochran Museum
As shown in this 1891 Austin map, freedmen communities or freedom colonies formed throughout Travis County following the Civil War. Wheatville was located on the east bank of Shoal Creek between West 24th St. and West 26th St. with Rio Grande on the east.
Wheatville is depicted in purple in the top left hand corner of the map. Source: Austin Public Library, Freedman Map
Listen to Dr. Tara Dudley, University of Texas School of Architecture professor, talk about the Wheatville Freedom Colony established by former enslaved individual, James Wheat, and the historic Gold Dollar building, constructed for
one of the founding fathers of Travis County’s Black community.
The Gold Dollar Building located on 24th and San Gabriel. Source: PICH 05425, Austin History Center, Austin Public Library
“The Drag,” which is the section of Guadalupe Street that runs along the University of Texas campus, gets its name from streetcars that were dragged by mules in the late 19th century. Over time, The Drag evolved from a streetcar route in the heart of early Austin to a hub of activism during the Civil Rights Era.
“The Drag” in 1927 Source: PICA 02251, Austin History Center, Austin Public Library
In
1961, University of Texas students advocating for desegregation began protests at the Texas and Varsity Theaters. The University of Texas had been desegregated a few years prior, but businesses surrounding the university had not yet followed in the school’s footsteps. The protests, supported by UT faculty and staff, led to the desegregation of the local theaters as well as other nearby businesses.
UT students “stand-in” to protest segregation at the Varsity in 1961. Source: The University of Texas History Corner
Life on the Corridor
“It's in motion all the time. And I think that's a good way to describe Guad. It's a street or it's a corridor in motion”
Michael Anowey
Source: Gabriel C. Pérez / KUT
“Luxury student housing next to like, 900 square foot, like cottages. It's really cool that the fabric of West Campus is so varied. That's one of the cool things about West Campus is that there's so many different styles of living, like the co-op, standard apartments, condos, with houses where you live with four people you're not related to.”
Allie Runas, West Campus Neighborhood Association President
College students apartments area in the residential neighborhood near UT Austin campus. Source: Wikimedia Commons, Vuemobie
“What we love about being in central Austin is that the walkability has allowed us to have one car instead of two, and we do walk, bike, and go everywhere. We use Shoal Creek as one of our major corridors and the other corridor is, in fact, Guadalupe.”
Wendy Carnegie, local resident and business owner
“There's a constant construction cycle in West Campus. It is the developer's responsibility to redo the sidewalk landscape as well. They take away all the light posts. And so when you're walking, there’s maybe an entire block where there's just no light.”
Allie Runas
Source: Lost In Austin
Listen to local artist and writer, Maggie Stephens share about the first time she walked on Guadalupe Street “the coolest place in the world.”
The legendary music venue Hole in the Wall has been a part of “The Drag” since 1974. Source: Lost In Austin
“One day some man walked down the street wearing a Superman costume and we were all in math and we're like, "What's happening?" The bagpiper guy that plays in the park also stands sometimes on a balcony and plays his bagpipes. You don't find that in a neighborhood situation, all these characters and all these people coming together and living life, however, they're living and everybody's living differently. That's interesting for kids to be a part of, and it's different for a school experience to be so integrated into a vibrant, diverse neighborhood like that.”
Lisa Zapalac, founder of Long-View Micro School
Students from the Long-View Micro School on a field trip on the UT campus, students frequently walk along 24th Street. Source: Long-View Micro School
Listen to Maggie Stephens talk about the previous residents who have lived in the house she now owns — the originator of the Texas A&M Hex Rally and an Austin music legend.
Photo of Madame Hipple likely taken in the house on 6/7/1967 Source: Briscoe Center for American History
“I could just walk down to Guadalupe and go in any direction and go and have an adventure."
Keith Garcia, former manager of the Dobie Theatre
Dobie Movie Theater in 2010. Source: Dobie Theater/Facebook
“I love knowing Murph, and I'll see him walking his dog, or I'll go and get a sandwich at Texas French Bread and we'll talk, or I'll go to see Jason at Junior’s, and we'll chat, or I met Debbie, who owns Counter Café, and she was really nice. It feels like, "I know those people." Everyone's sweet and welcoming or they're grouchy and funny. At least you know them. It doesn't feel anonymous at all.”
Maggie Stephens
Hi, How Are You mural painted by Daniel Johnston in 1993 located on the corner of Guadalupe and 21st Street in Austin, TX. (Photo Source: Hi, How Are You Foundation Inc
“It's a street that launches people everywhere.”
Maggie Stephens
Richard Linklater’s 1991 film, Slacker, was filmed along Guadalupe, noting important landmarks like the original location of Captain Quackenbush’s Intergalactic Espresso and Dessert Company. Source: Youtube
