The Henry G. Madison cabin located in Rosewood Neighborhood Park
About the cabin
The Henry G. Madison Cabin was built in approximately 1863 by pioneering Austin civic leader Henry Green Madison. Originally located at 807 East 11th Street, the cabin was the home of Madison, his wife Louisa Green, and their nine children. Madison eventually built a larger home around the original cabin, which was rediscovered by a demolition crew in 1963.
After its discovery, the cabin was donated to the City of Austin, where it was reassembled in Rosewood Neighborhood Park in 1973. The cabin was Designated as a Texas Historical Marker in 1974 and a City of Austin Landmark in 1976.
Austin Parks Foundation, in partnership with the City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department, is leading the restoration effort of the historic log cabin structure. The design phase is being led by Donna Carter, FAIA, principal of Carter Design Associates.
Learn more about the Henry G. Madison Cabin Restoration Project here.
Henry Green Madison (1843-1912) was Austin's first African American city council member. Born in Memphis, Tennessee in 1843, made his way to Austin as a freedman by the early 1860s.
Madison was a Unionist, serving as president of the Austin chapter of the Union League and an active participant in post-Civil War Reconstruction. He was appointed an assistant at the Texas Constitutional Convention of 1868-69 and also served as a captain of an African American unit in the Sixth Regiment of the Texas State Guard.
On February 1, 1871, Governor Edmund J. Davis appointed Henry Madison as city alderman, an office he held until November 28, 1872. He went on to serve as a porter, policeman and farmer before passing away on May 31, 1912. Madison is buried in Austin at Oakwood Cemetery.
Henry Green Madison (image courtesy of Austin History Center)
scope of restoration
To preserve the cabin for future generations, the entire structure requires architectural and structural improvements, including:
- Window and door restoration
- Repairs to log walls and chinking
- Roof replacement
- Lighting improvements
- Site and landscape improvements to address Texas Accessibility Standards (TAS) and Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance
- Sidewalk and hardscape improvements
- Operational improvements supporting venue flexibility for future programming
support this project:
this project is made possible by:
Austin Parks Foundation contributed initial funding of $55,000 to initiate the design phase, as well as securing generous additional funding:
- $4,500 from Preservation Austin
- $5,000 from Six Square
- $5,000 from Summerlee Foundation
- $15,000 from Alice Kleberg Reynolds Foundation
- $80,000 from the Texas Preservation Trust Fund, Texas Historical Commission
- $267,000 from the Heritage Preservation Grant, City of Austin
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