DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Stephen F. Austin Hotel in Travis County. Now settle in, because this is a story about a building that almost had a completely different name — and Austin wouldn't quite be Austin without it.
Back in 1924, T.B. Baker, President of Baker Hotels, looked at a piece of ground right here — ground that had been home to something called the Keystona Hotel — and decided Austin needed something grander. Something worthy of a growin' city.
He was going to call it The Texas. Simple, bold, done. Except — and here's where the locals had something to say about it — community interest pushed the name in a different direction.
The hotel that opened its doors in 1924 would carry the name of Stephen F. Austin instead. Now, to design this place, Baker didn't just grab the nearest blueprint.
He brought in the acclaimed Fort Worth firm of Sanguinet, Staats and Hedrick, who drew up a Beaux Arts hotel — a style that doesn't whisper, it announces. And to see that vision through on the ground, local architect Roy L. Thomas represented the firm right here during construction.
That building stood as designed for over a decade, and then in 1938 — five more stories went on top. Five. The place just kept reaching.
Years passed, the city grew up around it, and eventually the hotel got the careful attention it deserved. After a restoration completed in 2000, all that original, classically influenced detailing — on the interior and the exterior both — was brought back. A name that almost wasn't, a design that traveled from Fort Worth, a building that grew taller with time, and a restoration that honored all of it.
That's the Stephen F. Austin Hotel, still standin' right where Baker planted it a century ago.
What the marker says
To meet the needs of the growing Austin Community, T.B. Baker, President of Baker Hotels, opened a hotel in 1924 at this site, previously occupied by the Keystona Hotel. Baker's new facility, initially to be called "The Texas," was named for Stephen F. Austin in response to local interest. Acclaimed Fort Worth firm Sanguinet, Staats and Hedrick designed the Beaux Arts hotel; local architect Roy l. Thomas represented them in its construction. In 1938, five stories were added. After a restoration in 2000, the hotel retains much of its original, classically influenced detailing on the interior and exterior. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2002