2026 Angelina Eberly Luncheon for Austin History Center Association Draws a Large Crowd.
Story and photos by Forrest Preece
The 2026 Angelina Eberly Luncheon was held at the historic Austin Club on Thursday, Feb. 6. This yearly celebration is produced by and benefits the Austin History Center Association (AHCA). Around 200 guests attended the event, which was co-hosted by Dee Hall and Charles Peveto, AHCA President. The Honorary Chairs were Dan Bullock, Annette Carlozzi, and Nico Ramsey. Seen in the crowd were dignitaries such as Congressman Lloyd Doggett and his wife, Libby; Travis County Commissioners Brigid Shea and Ann Howard; Senior Justice Jan Patterson; Former Travis County District Clerk Amalia Rodriguez-Mendoza; Austin Public Library Director Hannah Terrell; and Austin History Center Division Manager Jennifer Chenoweth.
Adam Powell, the AHCA Executive Director, opened the event with remarks about how 2025 was a watershed year for the Austin History Center, which moved to the revitalized John Henry Faulk Building in December. He said that strategic plans are being made for creating a campus that will include the Faulk Building and the 1933 Library Building, where the AHC was formerly located. The result will be a world-class campus for historic research. Thanks to the addition of more wall space, many paintings and priceless artifacts, such as the original seal of the City of Austin, are now displayed on the AHC’s fourth floor for public viewing. He also noted that 2026 is the 100th anniversary of the Austin Public Library System.
Martha Hartzog, one of the four founders of the AHCA, delivered a lively account of Angelina Eberly’s legendary defense of Austin’s status as the state capital. Her talk was accented by cannon fire sound effects.
Dan Bullock, honorary event co-chair, followed with an account of his family history in Austin. Bullock’s documented ancestor, Richard Bullock, built the first hotel in Austin in 1839 at 6th and Congress Ave., the current site of One American Center. He hosted Sam Houston when he was in town on government business. Houston was a large man, and Bullock raised the legs of the dining table and built an extended-length bed to accommodate him. Angelina Eberly supposedly worked briefly as an innkeeper of the Bullock Hotel while building her Eberly House nearby. The Eberly was said to be a nicer place, and Sam Houston et al. were said to have moved their patronage there on subsequent Austin visits. The French established a consulate nearby while they were building the current French Legation up the hill from Congress Ave. The French soon grew tired of Texas diet fare, and they planted a garden of fresh vegetables to accommodate their more sophisticated palates. When the garden was thriving, Bullock's loosely managed pigs destroyed it. The French were furious and sought to prosecute Bullock. But the locals didn't like the French citizens and refused to punish him. After that, the French leadership chose to flee the inhospitable Austin and returned to friendlier environs in Houston and New Orleans.
The crowd was then entertained by Jasmine Williams, a professional opera singer, who performed an aria, and by a chorus from Impact Austin doing Broadway show tunes.
As the nonprofit partner of the Austin History Center, the AHCA preserves and shares the rich and diverse history that has shaped Austin's impact on Texas, the nation, and the world since 1839.
