Watson Chateau—Hiding in Plain Sight
The oldest building on UT’s campus is the Watson Chateau. Once owned by interior designer Arthur P. Watson, Jr. and his partner, Bob Garrett, the chateau hosted legendary parties that were often safe places for the LGBTQIA+ community in the 1960s-70s. Although they were not known as public advocates of the gay activist movement, their home provided refuge for gay men during the hostile anti-LGBTQ climate of the mid-twentieth century. In Austin, and nationwide, the LGBTQ community was fighting for rights, enduring the AIDS epidemic, and celebrating newfound unity. During this time, the house was cemented as a landmark and locus of Austin’s LGBTQ heritage.
The property was acquired via eminent domain by The University of Texas at Austin in the late 1960s. Obscured by the surrounding Dell Medical Center, the house is deteriorating and slipping from local memory. The disrepair will likely result in demolition by neglect if its preservation is not immediately prioritized. The lecture described opportunities that the site holds while highlighting its LGBTQIA+ history, women's history, architectural history, and African American history.
