Neill-Cochran House Museum

Built less than 20 years after Austin was founded, the Neill-Cochran House Museum is a window into some of the earliest years of Austin’s architectural, social, and political history, including the city's only surviving slave quarters. Lived-in room displays, interpretive exhibits, and hands-on experiences present an opportunity to reflect on our communities' present moments through a shared past.

Exhibits

The Hope Suite
Mark Smith was inspired to create the forty-four works of The Hope Suite in 2008, when that year’s U. S. presidential election revived his hope for our country. The artist soon broadened his theme beyond that of any particular presidency or any specific country. Art is a universal language that can build bridges between the diverse cultures of the world. That theme of global unity is what The Hope Suite is all about.

Cornerstone: Freemasonry, Texas and the Neill-Cochran House Museum
In the United States, many of our foundational political systems connect directly to Freemasonry, thanks to the number of Founding Fathers who were members of the society. Today, there are Masonic lodges in every one of the 50 states and Masons continue to play important roles in their communities.The Neill-Cochran House Museum has additional reasons to consider the history of Freemasonry. Our two remaining buildings are products of masonry - constructed of limestone rubble and mortar. But we also are unique in having been the home of two different Grand Masters - Andrew Neill and Thomas Cochran. These two men never knew one another and their terms were 40 years apart - but their experiences within Freemasonry can help us to understand the fraternal society as well as the period of time in American history when they were active. We invite you to dive in to learn more about the impact Freemasonry has had on our city, our state, and our nation from the 13 colonies, to the settlement of Texas in the 1820s and 1830s, to the Civil War, and even our relationship with Mexico at the end of the 19th century.

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