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(Oct. 1990) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES REGISTRATION FORM 1. NAME OF PROPERTY HISTORIC NAME: Austin Air-Conditioned Village Historic District OTHER NAME/SITE NUMBER: N/A 2. LOCATION STREET & NUMBER: 6602 and 6604 Daugherty Street; 6601 to 6603 Nasco Drive; 2500–2508 and 2601 Park View Drive; and 2500–2502, 2504, 2506, and 2600 Twin Oaks Drive NOT FOR PUBLICATION: N/A CITY OR TOWN: Austin VICINITY: N/A STATE: Texas CODE: TX COUNTY: Travis CODE: 453 ZIP CODE: 78757 3. STATE/FEDERAL AGENCY CERTIFICATION As the designated authority under the National Historic Preservation Act, as amended, I hereby certify that this ( x nomination) ( request for determination of eligibility) meets the documentation standards for registering properties in the National Register of Historic Places and meets the procedural and professional requirements set forth in 36 CFR Part 60. In my opinion, the property ( x meets) ( does not meet) the National Register criteria. I recommend that this property be considered significant ( x nationally) ( statewide) ( x locally). ( See continuation sheet for additional comments.) Signature of certifying official Date State Historic Preservation Officer, Texas Historical Commission State or Federal agency and bureau In my opinion, the property meets does not meet the National Register criteria. ( See continuation sheet for additional comments.) Signature of commenting or other official Date State or Federal agency and bureau 4. NATIONAL PARK SERVICE CERTIFICATION I hereby certify that this property is: Signature of the Keeper Date of Action entered in the National Register See continuation sheet. determined eligible for the National Register See continuation sheet determined not eligible for the National Register removed from the National Register other (explain): USDI/NPS NRHP Registration Form Austin Air-Conditioned Village Historic District, Austin, Travis County, Texas Page 2 5. CLASSIFICATION OWNERSHIP OF PROPERTY: Private CATEGORY OF PROPERTY: District NUMBER OF RESOURCES WITHIN PROPERTY: CONTRIBUTING NONCONTRIBUTING 17 3 BUILDINGS 0 0 SITES 0 0 STRUCTURES 0 0 OBJECTS 17 3 TOTAL NUMBER OF CONTRIBUTING RESOURCES PREVIOUSLY LISTED IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER: 0 NAME OF RELATED MULTIPLE PROPERTY LISTING: N/A 6. FUNCTION OR USE HISTORIC FUNCTIONS: EDUCATION/research facility DOMESTIC/single dwelling COMMERCE/organizational CURRENT FUNCTIONS: DOMESTIC/single dwelling 7. DESCRIPTION ARCHITECTURAL CLASSIFICATION: Modern Movement: Ranch Style and Contemporary MATERIALS: FOUNDATION CONCRETE; WOOD WALLS BRICK; STONE; ASBESTOS; WOOD: weatherboard and shingles; STUCCO ROOF ASPHALT; METAL OTHER NARRATIVE DESCRIPTION: (see continuation sheets 7-5 through 7-21). USDI/NPS NRHP Registration Form Austin Air-Conditioned Village Historic District, Austin, Travis County, Texas Page 3 8. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE APPLICABLE NATIONAL REGISTER CRITERIA X A PROPERTY IS ASSOCIATED WITH EVENTS THAT HAVE MADE A SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTION TO THE BROAD PATTERNS OF OUR HISTORY. B PROPERTY IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE LIVES OF PERSONS SIGNIFICANT IN OUR PAST. X C PROPERTY EMBODIES THE DISTINCTIVE CHARACTERISTICS OF A TYPE, PERIOD, OR METHOD OF CONSTRUCTION OR REPRESENTS THE WORK OF A MASTER, OR POSSESSES HIGH ARTISTIC VALUE, OR REPRESENTS A SIGNIFICANT AND DISTINGUISHABLE ENTITY WHOSE COMPONENTS LACK INDIVIDUAL DISTINCTION. D PROPERTY HAS YIELDED, OR IS LIKELY TO YIELD, INFORMATION IMPORTANT IN PREHISTORY OR HISTORY. CRITERIA CONSIDERATIONS: N/A AREAS OF SIGNIFICANCE: Engineering; Architecture PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE: 1954–1956 SIGNIFICANT DATES: 1954 SIGNIFICANT PERSON: N/A CULTURAL AFFILIATION: N/A ARCHITECT/BUILDER: (see continuation sheet 8-71). NARRATIVE STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: (see continuation sheets 8-22 through 8-70). 9. MAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHIC REFERENCES BIBLIOGRAPHY: (see continuation sheets 9-72 through 9-81). PREVIOUS DOCUMENTATION ON FILE (NPS): N/A _ preliminary determination of individual listing (36 CFR 67) has been requested. _ previously listed in the National Register _ previously determined eligible by the National Register _ designated a National Historic Landmark _ recorded by Historic American Buildings Survey # _ recorded by Historic American Engineering Record # PRIMARY LOCATION OF ADDITIONAL DATA: x State historic preservation office: Texas Historical Commission _ Other state agency _ Federal agency x Local government: Austin History Center, Austin Public Library x University: The University of Texas at Austin x Other: National Association of Home Builders Library, Washington, D.C. USDI/NPS NRHP Registration Form Austin Air-Conditioned Village Historic District, Austin, Travis County, Texas Page 4 10. GEOGRAPHICAL DATA ACREAGE OF PROPERTY: 8 acres UTM REFERENCES Zone Easting Northing 14 621015 3357505 VERBAL BOUNDARY DESCRIPTION: (see continuation sheet 10-82). BOUNDARY JUSTIFICATION: (see continuation sheet 10-82). 11. FORM PREPARED BY NAME/TITLE: A. Elizabeth Brummett ORGANIZATION: with research assistance from MidTex Mod DATE: September 14, 2020 (draft) STREET & NUMBER: 2016 McCloskey Street TELEPHONE: 512-496-8433 CITY OR TOWN: Austin STATE: Texas ZIP CODE: 78723 ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTATION CONTINUATION SHEETS MAPS: (see continuation sheet Map-83 through Map-84). PHOTOGRAPHS: (see continuation sheet Photo-85 through Photo-90). ADDITIONAL ITEMS: (see continuation sheets Figure-91 through Figure-132). PROPERTY OWNER NAME: (on file with the Texas Historical Commission). STREET & NUMBER: TELEPHONE: CITY OR TOWN: STATE: ZIP CODE: NPS Form 10-900-a OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 (8-86) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Austin Air-Conditioned Village Historic District Section 7 Page 5 Austin, Travis County, Texas Located on level terrain near the northwest edge of Austin, Texas, when constructed in 1954, the Austin Air-Conditioned Village Historic District encompasses portions of four blocks of the Edgewood Subdivision. Built by the collaborative effort of local homebuilders and national air-conditioning manufacturers, the houses were the site of testing conducted by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) in conjunction with the University of Texas at Austin and are early examples of moderately priced air-conditioned homes. The Ranch- and Contemporary-style houses are characterized by low-pitched roofs with broad overhangs; variations in orientation, plan, building materials, insulation, ductwork, and cooling equipment provided a basis of comparison for the testing. Development pressures have resulted in additions to many houses and the wholesale replacement of five of the original test houses; two heavily modified and three replaced houses have been excluded from the district boundaries. The district retains integrity, with seventeen of the twenty houses classified as contributing. __________________________________________________________________________________________ The Austin Air-Conditioned Village is located west of the commercial strip along Burnet Road, a major artery that runs from W. 45th Street to north of U.S. Highway 183. The district is contained within the Edgewood Subdivision, developed by local builder Wayne Burns. Part of a continuous stretch of residential development built primarily during the 1950s, Edgewood is bounded on the south and north by Treadwell and Green Acres subdivisions, on the west by Shoal Creek, and on the east by Daugherty Street and Burnet Road. The Austin Air-Conditioned Village Historic District consists of twenty lots within blocks B, C, D, and E, along Park View Drive, Twin Oaks Drive, Nasco Drive, and Daugherty Street. District boundaries follow property lines of eighteen of the twenty-three parcels historically associated with the Austin Air-Conditioned Village. Also included are two houses not built as part of the experiment, which represent contemporaneous building patterns in the area and simplify boundary conditions by including complete block faces. The gently curvilinear streets of Edgewood and adjacent subdivisions typically extend in one direction only or are bounded on both ends, generating an irregular pattern of long and short blocks. Twin Oaks Drive provides the main access to the Austin Air-Conditioned Village, extending from Burnet Road on the east to Shoal Creek Boulevard on the west. Park View Drive, a parallel long street, is one block shorter on each end, extending from Daugherty Street to Vine Street. Nasco Drive and Daugherty Street define short block faces and terminate within the district, Nasco extending south from Park View Drive and Daugherty north from Twin Oaks Drive. Streetscapes within the Air-Conditioned Village are marked by diversity in the houses’ orientations, landscaping, and fencing. Relatively consistent setbacks, with large front and back yards, provide cohesion to the district. Initial landscaping in the area was minimal, featuring open lawns with vegetation concentrated around the perimeter of the houses. Presently, mature trees, particularly native oaks and pecans, are scattered throughout front and back yards. Dense vegetation or dramatically modern landscape interventions detract from the historic character of some of the houses. Fencing types include chain link fences, vertical and horizontal wood privacy fences, steel screens, and decorative masonry screens. Many properties have storage sheds or NPS Form 10-900-a OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 (8-86) United States Department of

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