Hutto Commercial Historic District

Twelve brick commercial buildings on and near East Street make up the commercial core of Hutto, Texas, about 27 miles northeast of Austin. The first two, built in 1892 at the corner of East and Front streets, are two-part blocks with cast iron facades and elaborate Italianate cornices. Seven more followed in 1893, including a row of five identical one-part blocks with arched fronts and limestone keystones. A 1908 former bank with Spanish Revival character and an L-shaped 1914 building completed the group. Developers A.W. Carpenter and William M. Woolsey started the district after a tornado destroyed the earlier business area south of the railroad tracks. The buildings housed general stores, a bank, hardware and drug stores, and later a post office. Ten buildings contribute to the district's character and two have been heavily altered. The opposite side of East Street lost most of its historic buildings to a fire in 1901 and later demolition, leaving the west side as the intact remnant of the town's early commerce.