DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Ollie O. Norwood Estate in Travis County. Now settle in, because this one's got ambition, beauty, and the kind of heartbreak that only the Great Depression and a federal highway can deliver.
Ollie O. Norwood was a native of Macune, Texas — and after serving in France during World War One, he came home and set his sights on Austin. He brought his wife Calie with him, and before long, this man was making moves.
He became an early Austin-area investor and municipal bonds broker, and if you've ever looked up at the sixteen-story Norwood Tower in downtown Austin, or pulled into the Motoramp Garage right alongside it, well, those went up in 1929 — that's Ollie's handiwork. But back up a few years, because the real story starts in 1922, when Norwood purchased five lots along the Colorado River. By 1926, he had amassed over two full blocks in the new Travis Heights neighborhood — sitting right on the south-easternmost edge of the city at the time.
He called the whole spread Norcliff. Now, Norcliff wasn't just a house. Oh no.
The centerpiece was a modest Oriental-influenced Arts and Crafts bungalow, and from there, Ollie and Calie just kept building. They brought in local architect Hugo Kuehne — the same man who would later design the Austin Public Library in 1933 — and Kuehne shaped many of the property's features. What grew up around that bungalow was something to behold: formal gardens on the east side of the house, with brick walls and concrete-edged paths, a split-level greenhouse, a trellised brick teahouse, and a central fountain.
There was a geothermal spring-fed swimming pool with bathhouses and a connecting pergola. Tennis courts. Two additional bungalows built for the in-laws.
And down on the lower part of the estate, a pecan orchard. The whole vision was born of the idealism of the Arts and Crafts movement — Norcliff was meant as a place for respite within nature, while highlighting the beauty of man-made structure. A private world where the wild and the crafted lived side by side.
But then came the Great Depression, and Norwood lost most of his wealth. The additions ceased. The grand ambitions went quiet.
And if that weren't enough, in 1953, the state took the easternmost portion of the property for the construction of I-35. The highway drew its line right through the edge of what had been Norcliff. Ollie and Calie moved, but they held on — they retained possession of the estate until 1961, when it was sold upon Ollie Norwood's death.
The place passed out of family hands after nearly four decades. Then, in 1985, the City of Austin purchased the property and repurposed it as a park. So Norcliff, in the end, became what it was always meant to be — a place of respite, open now to anyone who wanders in.
The man from Macune built something that outlasted his fortune, outlasted the Depression, outlasted even I-35 nibbling at its edges. Not bad for a bonds broker with a dream and a good architect.
What the marker says
The 1922 Norwood Estate was known as "Norcliff" when the property was maintained by Ollie and Calie Norwood. A native of Macune, Texas, Norwood moved with his wife to Austin after serving in France during WWI. He was an early Austin-area investor and municipal bonds broker who is notably remembered for the constructionm of the sixteen-story Norwood Tower and the Motoramp Garage in downtown Austin (1929). In 1922, Norwood purchased five lots along the Colorado River, and by 1926, had amassed over two full blocks inn the new Travis Heights Neigborhood--then on the South-Easternmost edge of the city. Many features of the property were designed by local architect Hugo Kuehne, who later designed the Austin Public Library (1933). The centerpiece of the Estate was the house, a modest Oriental-Influenced Arts and Crafts bungalow. It grew to include formal gardens, a geothermal spring-fed swimming pool with bathhouses and connecting pergola, tennis courts, and two additional bungalows for in-laws. The formal garden on the east side of the house included brick walls, concrete-edged paths, a split-level greenhouse, a trellised brick teahouse, and a central fountain. A pecan orchard was located on the lower part of the estate. Born of the idealism of the Arts and Crafts movement, Norcliff was meant as a place for respite within nature, while highlighting the beauty of man-made structure. Unfortunately, Norwood lost most of his wealth during the Great Depression and additions ceased. In 1953, the state took the easternmost portion for construction of I-35. The couple moved, but retained possession of the estate until it was sold in 1961 upon Ollie Norwood's death. In 1985, the City of Austin purchased the property and repurposed it as a park. (2016)