Scarbrough Building

E.M. Scarbrough & Sons

File:Scarbrough's department store final logo.png
Company type	Department store
Industry	Retail
Founded	1874
Founder	Emerson Monroe Scarbrough, Sr.
Defunct	December 2009
Fate	Closed
Headquarters	Austin, Texas , United States
Area served	Austin, Texas and surrounding areas
Key people	Emerson Monroe Scarbrough, Sr., J. William Scarbrough, Lemuel Scarbrough
Products	Department store merchandise

Template:MdyTemplate:Infobox building

Scarbrough's department store final logo

The Scarbrough Building stands as a significant commercial landmark in downtown Austin, Texas. Positioned at the intersection of Congress Avenue and Sixth Street, this Chicago-style structure initially served as the flagship location for the E.M. Scarbrough & Sons department store, commonly referred to by locals as Scarbrough's. Notably, it was the first high-rise in Austin constructed with a steel frame. A major update in 1931 incorporated distinctive Art Deco features and introduced the first air conditioning system—referred to at the time as “manufactured weather”—installed by any retailer west of the Mississippi River. The building received recognition as a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark in 2001.

History

Construction of the building began in 1908 under the direction of Emerson Monroe Scarbrough, Sr., a former soldier in the Confederate Army, intended to serve as the flagship site for his department store. The retail operation originally launched in 1874 in Rockdale, Texas, under the name H.P. Hale, before transitioning to Scarbrough & Hicks. In 1893, Scarbrough entrusted R.H. Hicks with managing the store and relocated with his family to Austin, where he expanded the business by opening a new location within the Kreisle Building on the 400 block of Congress Avenue. By 1905, Scarbrough commissioned the architectural firm Sanguinet & Staats to design a new building specifically for his department store. Upon its completion in 1909, this structure held the distinction of being the tallest in Texas; however, George W. Littlefield soon surpassed it by adding a ninth floor to his nearby building just one year later.

During a period when bargaining was commonplace, Scarbrough's was among the first retailers to implement fixed price tags on all merchandise. In 1913, E.M. Scarbrough acquired full ownership of the business alongside his sons, J. William and Lemuel Scarbrough, rebranding it under their family name. The Scarbrough sons engaged architects Wyatt C. Hedrick and Edwin C. Kreisle in 1931 to renovate the building extensively. This refurbishment introduced an Art Deco exterior and expanded shop windows from six feet wide, enhancing visibility and appeal. At its peak, the department store occupied approximately 95,000 square feet across three floors, featuring ten distinct departments solely on the ground level.

The post-World War II economic boom significantly influenced shopping patterns among Austin’s growing population. During the 1970s, Scarbrough's inaugurated a branch within Highland Mall and later established another location as an anchor tenant at Barton Creek Square in 1981. Despite these expansions, declining sales during the 1982 holiday season led to the closure of the downtown flagship store. The final Scarbrough's outlet, situated on North Lamar Boulevard, ceased operations in December 2009.

Following the department store's closure, various retailers occupied the building’s ground floor and basement levels, including Brooks Brothers and Gold's Gym. In 2019, Punch Bowl Social—a venue offering entertainment and dining—secured a lease for these spaces.

In 2023, this historic building became home to the University of Austin campus, a private institution founded two years earlier.

Gallery

• 
  Aerial perspective of the Scarbrough Building captured in 2007
• 
  Entrance located on Sixth Street
• 
  Detailed shot highlighting Art Deco decorative elements