East Cesar Chavez, Austin, Texas facts for kids

East César Chávez, once called Masontown or Masonville, is a neighborhood in Austin, Texas. It's located in the central-east part of Austin, right by the Colorado River. This area is mostly within ZIP code 78702.

The East César Chávez neighborhood has clear borders. To the south, you'll find Lake Lady Bird and Festival Beach. To the east, it's bordered by Chicon Street and the Holly neighborhood. North of it is East Sixth Street and the Central East Austin neighborhood. To the west, East César Chávez is next to Interstate 35 and the Rainey Street area, which is a historic part of Downtown Austin. Most of the land here is used for homes, especially single-family houses. The neighborhood also includes the Willow-Spence Streets Historic District, a historic residential area.

History of East César Chávez

The East César Chávez neighborhood is one of Austin's oldest areas. Many of its homes were built in the early 1900s. These houses were simpler versions of the fancy Victorian homes you might see elsewhere in the city.

Masontown's Beginnings

The area north of Third Street and south of Sixth Street was originally settled by freed slaves after the Emancipation Proclamation. It was first known as Masontown or Masonville. This name came from brothers Sam and Raiford, who bought the land in 1867. At one point, this community had two churches and up to 200 residents. However, by the 1980s, Masontown was no longer a separate neighborhood. Today, like other early settlements in Austin such as Clarksville, there are few signs left of its original population.

Changes in the Neighborhood

In 1999, the City of Austin created a new plan for East César Chávez. A big part of this plan was to encourage "mixed-use development." This means building places that have both homes and businesses in the same area, instead of just single-family houses. New mixed-use buildings were constructed throughout the 2000s. This led to property values going up a lot. For example, property values in East Austin's 78702 ZIP code more than doubled between 2000 and 2005. This also caused changes in the population living there.

People in East César Chávez

In 2009, about 3,819 people lived in the East César Chávez area, which covers about 0.784 square miles. This means there were about 4,870 people per square mile. For comparison, the average for Austin as a whole was 2,610 people per square mile.

Population Makeup

The people living in East César Chávez came from different backgrounds:

• 75% were Hispanic/Latino
• 16% were white
• 6% were black
• 3% were from other groups

The average age for males in the neighborhood was 31.2 years, and for females, it was 35.8 years. This is a bit older than the city's average, which was 29.6 for males and 30.2 for females.

Schools in the Area

Students in the East César Chávez neighborhood attend schools within the Austin Independent School District.

• Sanchez Elementary School
• Martin Middle School
• Eastside Memorial High School