A digital archive of the Hill Country
A community archive of the people, places, schools, churches, and institutions of Westlake, Texas — collected, preserved, and shared with the community for the next hundred years.
Ch. 1 · Developing Westlake · Ep. 105
Emmett Shelton Sr. (1905-2000) tells us of the changes that came to Westlake Hills in the 1930s. Prohibition ended. Bee Cave Road was paved. Electricity came to the Bee Cave Road area. Mervin Ash was the King Pin of gamblers in Austin. He partnered with Emmett and brother Polk,…
Emmett Shelton Sr. (1905-2000) tells one of his favorite tales - His first Westlake business and a birthday surprise. Emmett was 24, a recently married college graduate in 1929. He and several partners built the Moosehead Lodge - where County Line on the Hill is now located. It…
Emmett Shelton Sr. (1905-2000) tells us the story of securing the land for the Dam site in 1938. Emmett and brother Polk ran a tough primary against Lyndon B. Johnson in LBJs first Congressional race. After LBJ was elected in 1938, he made a visit to Emmett and Polk's office.…
Emmett Shelton Sr. (1905-2000) Original developer of Westlake Hills, tells of a tip Emmett got from LBJ in1938 regarding the upcoming rehabilitation of the dams on the Colorado River. The Austin Dam had been broken for almost 30 years. LBJ advised Emmett of the WPA and plans to…
Interactive cartography
Layered maps — 1840 land grants, the 1944 Westlake survey, and the town today. Drop into any pin to read the story of that corner of the hill.
3,000 acres · 1938
Restored · circa 1933
Hand-drawn · 1944
Studio portrait · 1955