Goodall Wooten House
Austin, Travis County, Texas
Marker Inscription
Goodall Harrison Wooten (1869-1942) was born in Paris, Texas, the son of Confederate veteran Dr. Thomas Dudley Wooten and his wife, Henrietta Goodall Wooten. Goodall Harrison Wooten attended the University of Texas, were he earned Bachelor's and Master's degrees; and Columbia University, where he received a medical degree in 1895. He established a medical practice in Austin, and in 1897 married Ella Newsome (1878-1972). Construction of this house began in 1898 and was completed in January 1900. Designed by Dallas architect Charles O'Connell, it soon became an Austin landmark and was known for the extensive gardens planted by Ella Wooten. Renovations in 1910 changed the simple house into a grand Classical Revival mansion, and it remains one of the premier examples of that style in Austin. Prominent features of Goodall Wooten house include its handsome brick and stonework, wraparound gallery, balustrade, and massive two-story paired columns with Ionic capitals. It is typical of the large-scale homes built in this neighborhood at the turn of the century. The house remained in the Wooten family until 1944. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1990
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
At the turn of the twentieth century, Austin's prosperous families were building grand homes on the streets radiating from the university, and this was among the finest. Physician Goodall Harrison Wooten, son of a Confederate-veteran doctor, and his wife Ella completed the house in 1900 and transformed it in 1910 into a Classical Revival showpiece of paired Ionic columns and wraparound galleries. Ella's celebrated gardens helped make it a local landmark, and the family held the property until the 1940s.
Why it matters
The mansion captures the confidence and taste of Gilded Age Austin and stands as one of the city's premier surviving examples of Classical Revival domestic architecture.
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Related people
- · Goodall Harrison Wooten
- · Ella Newsome Wooten
- · Charles O'Connell
Themes & tags
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