Last updated: September 14, 2023
Place
Parque Zaragosa
Photograph by Gregory Smith, courtesy of the Texas Historical Commission
Quick Facts
Location:
2608 Gonzales St., Austin, Texas
Significance:
Entertainment/Recreation, Ethnic Heritage - Hispanic (Mexican), Social History
Designation:
Listed in the National Register - Reference number 100007750
MANAGED BY:
Parque Zaragosa in Austin, Texas was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2022. The property is significant as a gathering space for Austin's Mexican American community since 1931.
The park was built amidst growing racism in Austin in the 1920s. Mexican immigrants had been steadily arriving, working, and living in Austin since the Reconstruction era, and began immigrating in increased numbers during the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920). While Mexican communities had traditionally lived in the city's Old Mexico neighborhood, the influx of new residents led many to move to East Austin. White residents were dissatisfied with this population boom, and retaliated with increasing institutional racism throughout the 1920s. Part of this new era of codified segregation included restricting government services for non-whites, which were already inadequate, to the eastern part of the city.
Because East Austin residents could not depend upon the city to provide adequate public services, they looked to one another for social support. In Mexican American communities across the country, organizations that provided social services also emphasized cultural pride, and the opportunity to gather for cultural events. In Austin, these organizations, and the local comités patriótico (patriotic committee) in particular, lobbied for parkland in East Austin. In 1931, the city approved the creation of Parque Zaragosa, named after the Mexican general Ignacio Zaragosa who won the Battle of Puebla. Throughout the years, the park has included a swimming pool, tennis courts, playground, bathhouse, recreation center, and bandstand.
The park quickly became a community hub for East Austin's Mexican American population. It is particularly notable as a site for Diez y Seis de Septiembre and Cinco de Mayo celebrations. While early celebrations at the park were simple get-togethers, they evolved into multi-day events with live music, dancing, speakers, and theatrical performances. The park also offered the community with opportunities to form sports teams, receive medical care at pop-up clinics, and participate in arts education during a time when they were cut off from those same opportunities elsewhere in the city.
While the park began to fall into disrepair in the late 20th century, community support fought to reclaim the park and rehabilitate its facilities. Today, Parque Zaragosa remains an important space for recreation, community-building, and civic education in East Austin.
The park was built amidst growing racism in Austin in the 1920s. Mexican immigrants had been steadily arriving, working, and living in Austin since the Reconstruction era, and began immigrating in increased numbers during the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920). While Mexican communities had traditionally lived in the city's Old Mexico neighborhood, the influx of new residents led many to move to East Austin. White residents were dissatisfied with this population boom, and retaliated with increasing institutional racism throughout the 1920s. Part of this new era of codified segregation included restricting government services for non-whites, which were already inadequate, to the eastern part of the city.
Because East Austin residents could not depend upon the city to provide adequate public services, they looked to one another for social support. In Mexican American communities across the country, organizations that provided social services also emphasized cultural pride, and the opportunity to gather for cultural events. In Austin, these organizations, and the local comités patriótico (patriotic committee) in particular, lobbied for parkland in East Austin. In 1931, the city approved the creation of Parque Zaragosa, named after the Mexican general Ignacio Zaragosa who won the Battle of Puebla. Throughout the years, the park has included a swimming pool, tennis courts, playground, bathhouse, recreation center, and bandstand.
The park quickly became a community hub for East Austin's Mexican American population. It is particularly notable as a site for Diez y Seis de Septiembre and Cinco de Mayo celebrations. While early celebrations at the park were simple get-togethers, they evolved into multi-day events with live music, dancing, speakers, and theatrical performances. The park also offered the community with opportunities to form sports teams, receive medical care at pop-up clinics, and participate in arts education during a time when they were cut off from those same opportunities elsewhere in the city.
While the park began to fall into disrepair in the late 20th century, community support fought to reclaim the park and rehabilitate its facilities. Today, Parque Zaragosa remains an important space for recreation, community-building, and civic education in East Austin.