H.B. Hancock House ❖ 1886

Address: 1717 West Avenue

Historic Designations:

• Recorded Texas Historic Landmark (1981)

• City of Austin Historic Landmark (1981)

Built in 1886 for African American businessman Hugh B. Hancock, the Victorian-style Hancock House originally stood on East Seventh Street and featured classical ornamentation.

Built in 1886, this house was originally located on 7th Street in the Robertson Hill area of East Austin. It was constructed for Hugh B. Hancock, a successful black businessman of the city, who was born to Judge John Hancock and a former slave, Eliza [born in North Carolina]. During the Civil War, Judge Hancock sent Hugh, his brother, and his mother to live in Oberlin, Ohio. Hugh attended Oberlin College in Ohio between 1860 and the early 1870s.

It was sold in 1904 to German immigrant Charles Frederick Mann, a Southern Pacific railroad engineer, whose family lived there until 1959. Relocated to 1717 West Avenue in 1978, the home was restored by Dr. and Mrs. Earl Howard for use as a physician’s office.