Clarksville

Duane's take

The official marker tells this one, and I'm just the voice carrying it down the road. Now settle in, because this is a story about land, and faith, and what a community can build when it decides to build together. We're talking about Clarksville — a historic Black neighborhood right there in Travis County, tucked against the edge of Austin.

It started, as the best stories do, with a single act. In 1871, a freedman named Charles Clark bought two acres of land on what is now Tenth Street. Two acres.

That was the nucleus — that was the seed of everything that followed. And according to tradition, Clark wanted to start a community for his people. That was the intention behind the purchase, the vision behind those two acres.

Now, for years, Clarksville sat out in what the marker calls a wilderness on the outskirts of Austin, crossed only by a few country roads. You have to picture that — this community taking shape at the edge of things, away from the center, finding its own center instead. And find it they did.

Gradually, Clarksville grew into a closely knit village, and at the heart of that village was the Sweet Home Baptist Church. Everything revolved around it. At first, the congregation met in the home of Mrs.

Mary Smith — her home was the church before there was a church. Then, in 1882, they purchased the site. And the faith in that community, well, the marker puts it plainly and beautifully: religious fervor was strong in those days.

Strong enough that residents would stand on their porches at dawn just to begin the day with a hymn. Think about that image — porches at first light, voices rising before the sun's even properly up. The first church building went up in the 1880s, and the present one — the fourth — was built in 1935.

Four buildings, one unbroken congregation. Now Clarksville produced some remarkable people. Elias Mayes served in the Texas Legislature in 1879 and in 1889.

That name deserves to be said clearly and remembered. And then there was The Reverend Jacob Fontaine, one of the first ministers of Sweet Home Baptist Church. Reverend Fontaine was instrumental in unifying Negro Baptist churches in Austin — that was no small undertaking.

And he started the first Negro newspaper in the city, a paper called The Gold Dollar. One minister, one church, two enormous contributions to the wider community beyond Clarksville's borders. As of 1973, when this story was set down on a marker, Clarksville encompassed over nine square blocks, bounded by Tenth Street, West Lynn, and Waterston streets, and the Missouri-Pacific Railroad tracks.

From two acres on a country road at the edge of a wilderness, to nine square blocks of living history. Charles Clark bought land. A community built a life on it.

And Clarksville is still right there to prove it.

What the marker says

Historic Black neighborhood. Settled in 1871 when Charles Clark, a freedman, bought two acres of land on present Tenth Street. This formed the nucleus of the community that Clark, according to tradition, wanted to start for his people. For years Clarksville lay in a wilderness on the outskirts of Austin, crossed only by a few country roads. Gradually it grew into a closely knit village, with activities centering on the Sweet Home Baptist Church. At first members met in the home of Mrs. Mary Smith. Then, in 1882, they purchased this site. Religious fervor was strong in those days, and the residents often stood on their porches at dawn to begin the day with a hymn. The first church building was erected in the 1880s; present (fourth) one in 1935. Among Clarksville's distinguished citizens was Elias Mayes, who served in the Texas Legislature in 1879 and 1889. One of the first ministers of Sweet Home, The Rev. Jacob Fontaine, was instrumental in unifying Negro Baptist churches in Austin and started the first Negro newspaper, "The Gold Dollar," in the city. As of 1973, Clarksville encompassed over 9 square blocks, bounded by Tenth, West Lynn, and Waterston streets and the Missouri-Pacific Railroad tracks. (1973)