Quote:
Originally Posted by arbeiter
I have an old map of Austin from about 1920 somewhere I wanted to include, but I can't find it. It had a few interesting place markers on it.
It called Lake Austin "Lake McDonald" and referred to Westlake, at least what might be called Upper Westlake today (i.e. the area near Davenport Ranch shopping center that is in Austin proper) as Chatauqua!
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Here's some info from texasescapes.com
http://www.texasescapes.com/AustinTe...LakeAustin.htm
Riverboats were very popular at the turn of the century and made regular excursions to what was then known as Lake McDonald. A paddleboat called the Ben Hur used to take people up to Camp Chautauqua for parties before the Colorado River was dammed.
Here is a postcard of the Ben Hur from
http://www.austinpostcard.com
The original dam which formed Lake McDonald was called the Austin Dam. The press often referred to it as The Great Dam or The Great Granite Dam. It gave way during a flash flood on August 7, 1900 and its rubble formed what is now Red Bud Isle. Many of the dam's original granite blocks are in the parking lot today.
The rubble of the dam –large granite blocks, rubble infill and chunks of concrete– formed Red Bud Isle in a matter of hours. Over the years, silt, trash dumping, construction waste and lots of new greenery would fill in the island and make it seem like it had always been there.
Source
A couple of postcards of the dam from austinpostcard.com
Postcard of the dam after the flood
Quote:
Originally Posted by arbeiter
And it also referred to the area directly north of Mount Bonnell (probably the area between 2222 and Cat Mountain) as Spicewood Springs. I have always thought that Spicewood Springs was kind of a fake place name, since it is seemingly meant to describe a non-existent body of water for an area over 5 miles long.
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More info from texasescapes.com:
What is now Lake Austin was once a thriving area of early settlements. The water has since covered up several springs. Power House Springs was discovered during the construction of one of the dams in 1893. Bee Springs, just above Tom Miller Dam, is under the convergence of Bee Creek and Lake Austin. Mormon Springs was the site of a Mormon settlement in 1846 and was also used for a gristmill. Mount Bonnell Springs is a cluster of water sources near the mountain. Santa Monica Springs was also a popular watering hole and many artifacts were found there
I'll bet Spicewood Springs was another spring that was covered up when Lake Austin was formed.