Before the University of Texas. Before St. Edward's. Before any other college or university in the city, there was Huston-Tillotson—a beacon of higher education on the east side of Austin, founded in 1875 to serve Black students in a state that wanted to deny them everything.
That's not just history. That's a 150-year head start on excellence.
1875
Founded
150
Years of Excellence
#1
Austin's Oldest College
Two Schools, One Mission
The university we know today was born from two institutions with a shared purpose. Tillotson Collegiate and Normal Institute was chartered in 1875 by Reverend George Jeffrey Tillotson with support from the Freedmen's Aid Society. Less than a mile away, the St. Paul Methodist Episcopal Church established what would become Samuel Huston College, named for an Iowa farmer who donated $10,000 to the cause of Black education in Texas.
For decades, these two schools operated side by side on the east side of Austin—Tillotson on a hilltop locals called "Bluebonnet Hill," Samuel Huston just down the road. Both were training Black teachers, doctors, lawyers, and leaders at a time when the state of Texas offered them nothing.
"In union, strength."
— Huston-Tillotson University Motto, adopted 1952
The Merger
On October 24, 1952, the two colleges officially became one. The merger wasn't just practical—it was powerful. Two institutions that had separately defied a segregated system now joined forces to become the primary source of higher education for Black students across all of Central Texas.
Two years later, Brown v. Board of Education would begin dismantling legal segregation in American schools. But Huston-Tillotson had been doing the work for nearly 80 years already. They didn't wait for the law to change. They built their own path.
Jackie Robinson Walked These Halls
Before he broke baseball's color barrier, Jackie Robinson spent the 1944-45 school year at Samuel Huston College as head of the athletics department. He coached the basketball team. He walked the same campus that would later become Huston-Tillotson. The man who would change American sports forever got his start in education right here in East Austin.
He's far from the only remarkable figure to pass through these doors.
Notable Alumni & Associates
Azie Taylor Morton
The 36th Treasurer of the United States—the first and only Black person to ever hold the position. Her signature appeared on U.S. currency during the Carter administration.
Norman Scales Sr.
Tuskegee Airman and the first Black pilot commissioned from Austin. A street in Mueller is named in his honor.
Frederick D. Patterson
Received his early education at Samuel Huston College, later becoming president of Tuskegee Institute and founder of the United Negro College Fund.
Dr. Connie Yerwood Connor
Graduated from Huston College in 1925. Became the first Black doctor to work for the Texas Department of Health.
Inez Beverly Prosser
Earned her degree at Samuel Huston College in 1926. Became the first Black woman in America to receive a doctoral degree in psychology.
Lucille Elizabeth Bishop Smith
Graduated around 1912. Invented the first hot biscuit mix and became known as "the first Black businesswoman in Texas."
Volma Overton Sr.
Attended Tillotson College 1947-1950. Led the Austin NAACP chapter for over two decades and fought to desegregate Austin schools. Lamar Beach was renamed in his honor.
Dr. Herman Aladdin Barnett III
Graduated from Samuel Huston College in 1948. Fighter pilot, surgeon, and the first Black man to graduate from UT Medical School.
Still Standing, Still Leading
Today, Huston-Tillotson University continues its mission on that same East Austin hilltop. The Tillotson College site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. The Samuel Huston College site earned the same honor in 1996.
In 2022, Dr. Colette Pierce Burnette—the first woman to serve as president since the 1952 merger—was named Austinite of the Year by the Austin Chamber of Commerce. The university she leads has been shaping this city longer than any other institution of higher learning.
Huston-Tillotson isn't just part of Austin's history. It's the foundation. For 150 years, this HBCU has been proving what's possible when you refuse to accept the limits others try to place on you.
In union, strength. In excellence, legacy.
Source: ATXtoday · "History of Austin's first institution of higher learning: Huston-Tillotson University" by Vagney Hampshire
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