HistoricSiteMarkers
Reconstruction & Gilded AgeProgressive & Modern Era

Green Pastures

Austin, Travis County, Texas

Marker Inscription

This Victorian home, located on the 1835 Isaac Decker Grant, was built in 1894-95 by Dr. E. W. Herndon and sold in 1912 to Judge W. W. Burnett. It became the residence in 1916 of lawyer Henry Faulk (1867-1939), his wife Martha (Miner) (1878-1957), and their children, Hamilton, Martha, Mary, John Henry, and Texana. Naming the home "Green Pastures," Mary and her Husband Chester Koock opened it for public dinning in 1946. It was purchased in 1969 by their son Ken Koock and Lee Buslett. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 1976

Erected by Texas Historical Commission

The Story

This Austin Victorian rose in 1894-95 on an 1835 land grant and passed through several prominent owners before becoming the home of the Faulk family in 1916. Mary Faulk and her husband Chester Koock named it "Green Pastures" and opened it for public dining in 1946, turning the old house into a beloved Austin institution. It was recorded as a Texas Historic Landmark in 1976.

Why it matters

Green Pastures shows how a grand private home could be carried into a new century as a public gathering place, preserving Gilded Age architecture through the enterprise of the women and families who kept it alive.

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Related people

  • · Mary Faulk Koock
  • · Henry Faulk

Themes & tags

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