HUSTON-TILLOTSON UNIVERSITY

History

Founded in 1875, by Rev. George Jeffrey Tillotson built upon the work of the Freemen’s Aid Society of the American Missionary Association of the Congregational churches (now the United Church of Christ) to establish Tillotson College in Austin, Texas. In 1876, Samuel Huston College was established in the basement of St. Paul Methodist Episcopal Church in Dallas by Rev. George Warren Richardson, a Methodist minister. He also strengthened the school and in 1878, helped move it to Austin in the basement of Wesley United Methodist Church.

In 1879, the first building on the Tillotson campus, Allen Hall, was constructed on land that is now 900 Chicon Street. In 1912, Evans Industrial Hall was constructed for industrial arts. In 1930, Tillotson College’s first woman president, Dr. Mary E. Branch, was named. In 1944, Samuel Huston College named baseball great Jackie Robinson as the men’s basketball coach. College president Dr. Karl E. Downs Downs also performed the marriage ceremony uniting Jackie and Rachel Robinson.

In 1952, Samuel Huston College, located at what is now Twelfth Street (then College Avenue) and IH-35 (then East Avenue), and Tillotson College merged officially to create Huston-Tillotson College. The merger created one of the largest black Protestant church-related colleges in the country. In 2005, Dr. Larry L. Earvin, president, facilitated the name change from Huston-Tillotson College to Huston-Tillotson University.

In 2010, the University completed reaffirmation by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.

Campus Life

With just over 1,000 undergrad students, the college has two residence halls: Beard-Burrows Hall for male students and Allen-Frazier Hall for female students. Each features a kitchen, wireless computer access and a computer lab.

ADDRESS: 900 Chicon Street, Austin, TX
PHONE: 512-505-3036
WEBSITE: http://www.htu.edu

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