Get to know Barton Creek Greenbelt’s history through new website

Get to know Barton Creek Greenbelt’s history through new website

Barton Creek Greenbelt

Karen Kocher will launch a new website explaining the history of the Barton Creek Greenbelt.

Thousands of people swim, hike, or pedal bicycles along Barton Creek, but few understand how this twisty, beloved stretch of greenbelt was preserved for public use.

And it almost wasn’t.

Related: Joan Khabele led effort to desegregate Barton Springs Pool

Creators of a new interactive map and timeline that explains the history of the Barton Creek Greenbelt will launch their project with a live demonstration at 11:30 a.m. Saturday at the Beverly S. Sheffield Center at Barton Springs.

“It’s a fascinating history and it illustrates how people, if they band together and organize, can triumph in saving our natural environment despite the political and economic forces standing in the way,” says Karen Kocher, executive producer of the project. Kocher, a professor of practice in the Department of Radio-Television-Film at the University of Texas, also created the Living Springs documentary series.

Barton Creek Greenbelt

The map portion of the website allows users to click on different places in the Greenbelt.

You can explore the new website here. (I’m particularly excited about the map page – a photo I snapped of a man playing with his dog in the creek is used as an icon for the Barking Springs pullout.)

The site is loaded with archival photos, newspaper clippings and quotes from people who visit the greenbelt and pool. It includes information from the 1950s until present day, including interviews with artists, cyclists, swimmers, cavers and more.

 

 

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Ceremony will honor Joan Khabele, who led effort to desegregate Barton Springs

Ceremony will honor Joan Khabele, who led effort to desegregate Barton Springs

Joan Khabele

Joan Khabele led a swim-in at Barton Springs in the summer of 1960. Photo courtesy Austin Parks Department

Before her high school senior picnic, the principal at Austin High School called Joan Means Khabele into the office to tell her the school’s eight black students wouldn’t be allowed to attend.

Zilker Park and Barton Springs Pool were segregated.

That spurred the young activist to take the plunge into the cool, chilly waters of Barton Springs Pool anyway, in an act of civil disobedience. That jump sparked a movement of swim-ins that took place throughout the summer of 1960.

Eventually, the city ordinance was changed. The pool officially integrated in 1962.

barton springs Joan Khabele

A ceremony to honor Joan Khabele, who led the effort to desegregate Barton Springs, is scheduled for 10 a.m. Saturday at the pool. Pam LeBlanc photo

City to honor Joan Khabele on Saturday

This Saturday, the city of Austin will honor Khabele, who died of leukemia in October, with a proclamation, speakers, and water blessing at the pool. The Moment of Silence & Splash is scheduled for 10 a.m. until noon.

A PBS documentary featuring Khabele talking about her swim will be screened at the pool. Community members are invited to share their personal experiences regarding race at Barton Springs at listening booths that will be set up on the grounds. The interviews will become part of an exhibit at the Beverly S. Sheffield Education Center.

Khabele attended Blackshear Elementary School and Kealing Junior High and was among the third group of students to integrate Austin High School in the late 1950s, according to an article by Michael Barnes in the Austin American Statesman. During her senior year of high school, she was a student activist. She attended the University of Chicago, joined the Peace Corps in Africa, and later earned a master’s degree in African studies and taught at universities in Zambia, Botswana, Lesotho, and Nigeria.

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Barton Springs and Deep Eddy close today until further notice

Barton Springs and Deep Eddy close today until further notice

Barton Springs and Deep Eddy pools are closed until further notice due to the spike in COVID-19 cases. Pam LeBlanc photo


If you were planning on a dip in Barton Springs Pool this July 4 weekend, you’ll have to make alternate plans.
With COVID-19 cases on the rise, the City of Austin has closed Barton Springs Pool and Deep Eddy Pool, effective today. The pools will remain closed until further notice.
All parks and recreational facilities, including city parks, golf courses, boat ramps, museums, gardens, preserves and tennis courts, will close Friday through Sunday, July 5. Pre-paid park admission passes will be refunded.
For a full listing of park closures, visit austintexas.gov/parkclosures.

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Taking the New Year’s plunge at Barton Springs Pool

Taking the New Year’s plunge at Barton Springs Pool

Jumping into Barton Springs on New Year’s Day is an Austin tradition. Chris LeBlanc photo

​I leapt into 2020 at Barton Springs Pool today, along with several hundred others who realized that a Polar Plunge into Barton Springs Pool barely merits a cup of hot chocolate.

The water temperature at the spring-fed pool in downtown Austin hovers around 70 degrees year-round (that despite a rumor that it’s always 68 degrees.) And 70 degrees actually feels quite comfortable when the air temperature is in the upper 50s.

That’s the thing about swimming at Barton Springs in the winter. There’s less of a difference between the air and water temperature, so it’s not that shocking when you get in. The cold comes later, when you get out and stand on the edge of the pool, dripping wet.

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My husband and I managed just fine, though, and so did plenty of others who ventured down for the party.

A couple of outdoor heaters were set up just outside the gates, so air-cooled swimmers could thaw out before heading home.

I spotted a man in a dinosaur suit, a woman in a shark costume, a guy wearing a weird red, white and blue onesie and others out to help Austin maintain its reputation for weirdness.

And that spring water helped baptize the new year for me.

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