After great success in the oil business, George Hiram Cooke and his wife Harriet moved to Austin and constructed the bungalow about 1924. The Cooke House is tucked into one of the tree-lined streets of the Hyde Park Historic District.
The house was built in a classic Craftsman style that was popular in the era and prevalent in the Hyde Park neighborhood. The asymmetrical design of the home features a low-pitched, double gable roof. The overhanging eaves, supported by tapered wooden columns with sturdy brick bases, provide shelter for a welcoming front porch. The home is clad in painted wood sided siding.
George and Harriet both passed away in 1951 and the daughter Hazel and her family moved into the house. In 1956, the home was rehabilitated as a duplex to accommodate Hazel’s sister, Dr. Mildred Cooke, a pioneering doctor at a time when only 4% of physicians in the United States were female.
The current owners purchased the home in 2014 and undertook a comprehensive restoration in 2022, with the help of O’Connell Architecture. Tere designed a floor plan to accommodate the couple’s growing family and converted the home back to a single-family residence, giving it modern conveniences while staying true to its Craftsman design. An ill-planned attic conversion from an earlier renovation was replaced with a more appropriate floorplan that includes three bedrooms, one bath and a playroom. The upstairs is connected to the ground floor by a new cherry wood staircase that opens into the parlor and is an important part of the new vision for the home, thoughtfully designed to fit into the home’s historic character. It provides cohesion for the space through a more traditional, clear circulation pattern. The entry parlor features the original fireplace with built-in benches on each side, as well as original long-leaf pine flooring seen throughout most of the first floor. Salvaged wood from a historic home at 7th Street and Baylor was used to repair the kitchen floor and other first-floor areas and was installed on the second floor as well.
Part of the work also included creating larger closet space and bath for the primary bedroom, a proper laundry room and a guest room suite that is somewhat insulated from the rest of the house. The updated kitchen and bathrooms incorporate historic light fixtures and cabinetry custom-designed for the spaces. The powder room off the main hall is a special gem with beautiful wallpaper, penny floor tile and stained baseboard and trim. The owners were thoughtful in their approach and helped to ensure the house will continue to contribute to the charm of the Hyde Park neighborhood.