About: Blackland, Austin, Texas

Blackland is a historically black neighborhood on the east side of Austin, Texas, located north of Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd, south of Manor Road, east of I-35, and west of Chestnut Street. The neighborhood was originally known as Blacklands and was settled by Swedish immigrants, but evolved into a predominantly African-American neighborhood following the 1928 Austin city plan, which called for the relocation of non-white residents to the east side of the city. Up until the 1980s, the neighborhood was targeted for demolition to make way for an expansion of the University of Texas campus. In 1983, the Blackland Community Development Corporation was formed to build, purchase and maintain housing for low-income families and special populations.