The Dewitt C. Greer State Highway Building is an eight-story structure in downtown

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

housing offices of the

Texas Department of Transportation The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT ) is a government agency in the American state of Texas. Though the public face of the agency is generally associated with the construction and maintenance of the state's immense state highway system ...

since its completion. Located at the southwest corner of 11th and Brazos Streets (125 E. 11th Street), the building was designed by

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

architect Carleton Adams and finished in 1933 at a cost of $455,000. It features elaborate

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

styling, including decorative carved limestone panels above the front doors. The building was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

along with the 1918 State Office Building in 1998.

Texas Historical Commission Marker Text

Established April 4, 1917 - Early 20th century

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

farmers demanded all-weather access to markets just as automobiles revolutionized transportation for all travelers. Good-roads promoters envisioned a central state agency to organize safe, consistent routes. In 1916, the federal government offered matching funds to build a statewide highway system. In 1917, legislators created the Texas Highway Department, and Texans registered 195,000 automobiles. Agency employees worked in the Capitol, then the 1917 Land Office, and soon the agency opened district offices across the state. In 1921, federal officials approved a 2,900-mile Texas system, ensured by a one-cent-per-gallon state gas tax after 1923. During the Great Depression, federal relief funds stimulated massive road building. Engineers also promoted a new headquarters, and in 1933 completed this state highway building. From here, Dewitt Carlock Greer (1902–1986) served as state highway engineer, 1940–1967, and commissioner, 1969 to 1981, when legislators named the building for him. That year, as the agency's role expanded to public transportation, it managed 71,000 miles of highways for 12 million Texas vehicles. (1997)

References

External links

Texas Department of Transportation
Office buildings in Austin, Texas National Register of Historic Places in Austin, Texas Art Deco architecture in Texas Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Texas {{Texas-NRHP-stub