Hyde Park Presbyterian Church
a.k.a. Old Hyde Park Baptist Church
3915 Ave. B, Austin, TXConstructed in 1896 to serve the congregation of the Hyde Park Baptist Church, this example of vernacular ecclesiastical architecture currently serves as the Hyde Park Presbyterian Church. While the neighborhood historically has hosted numerous religious institutions since its inception, only a few sanctuaries have retained their historic integrity in the face of the pressures of growing congregations. As a result, the Hyde Park Presbyterian Church is nominated under Criterion C as a significant example of nonresidential architecture in the subdivision.
Despite its peripatetic history, the church is the only ecclesiastical facility remaining from the initial period of Hyde Park's development. Exhibiting proportions and materials appropriate to the modest scale and frame construction that typify Hyde Park's residences, the building contributes to the historic character of the neighborhood. Its simple form, frame construction, and modest detailing typify small-scale churches built in Texas during the late 19th century. The composition of sanctuary fronted with a tower is characteristic of Baptist churches and may be traced to the Wren-Barogue ecclesiastical form prevalent in the eastern United States. The understated ornament is also typical of early Baptist churches in Texas. The straight-forward arrangement of the interior reflects the liturgical outlook of the sect; orderly pews directed to a simple altar table and pulpit denote the importance of the spoken word in their service. Provision of the design and construction by members of the congregation is also typical of similar churches, a tradition reflected by the Wesley Brethren Church (1866/1883/1891; NR 1979/1983) in Welcome, Texas.
The history of this building has its roots in the founding of the Hyde Park Baptist Church. On June 1, 1894, Reverend W.D. Beverly preached to a group of devout neighborhood residents at the Hyde Park Pavilion. The session provided the impetus to organize Hyde Park's first congregation. With plans delineated by Reverend Beverly, church members constructed this building in 1896 on land donated by Beverly and his wife. Beverly's design for the sanctuary in part reflected the visual influence of the nearby Hyde Park Pavilion, site of the congregation's first meeting. Built in 1892 to house theater productions, concerts, and dances, the Pavilion was an important social center for the neighborhood. Despite the irony of modelling the church after a pleasure hall, the newly constructed sanctuary served the Baptists until 1909, when pressures of an expanding congregation prompted a search for alternate facilities.
Concurrently, seminary students approached Dr. Daniel Allen Penick with plans to open a Presbyterian Church in the neighborhood. Penick, an instructor at the University of Texas and a pioneer in the campus ministry movement, approached Monroe M. Shipe to arrange for the donation of a tract of land. Shipe saw an opportunity to rid the neighborhood of an unwelcome saloon which, through omission of the characteristic deed restriction prohibiting such operations in Hyde Park, was tainting the dignified character of West 40th Street. If Penick and the students could open a church by a specific deadline, the saloon would be forced to close in the face of a state law prohibiting the sale of alcoholic beverages in the vicinity of a church.
As the needs of the Baptist and incipient Presbyterian congregations coincided, Penick arranged to purchase and relocate the Baptist sanctuary. By moving the church to the new site, Penick met Shipe's conditions and secured the future of the Hyde Park Presbyterian Church. The Baptists and Presbyterians held services in shifts at the sanctuary's new location at 406 West 40th Street until the Baptists occupied their new building in 1911 (DR 333:537; Austin City Directory 1912).
In 1921 the Hyde Park Presbyterian Church was moved to its present location at the corner of Avenue B and 40th Street (DR 333:482). The sanctuary was expanded at this time. Following World War II, a social hall was appended to the rear of the sanctuary to provide additional space for classroom facilities. Oral tradition maintains that this addition is a surplus building moved onto the site from Camp Swift, a nearby military base.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1990.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.