Pilot Knob, Texas

Coordinates: 30°09′51″N 97°41′35″W / 30.16417°N 97.69306°W / 30.16417; -97.69306
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Pilot Knob
Pilot Knob is located in Texas
Pilot Knob
Pilot Knob
Location within the state of Texas
Pilot Knob is located in the United States
Pilot Knob
Pilot Knob
Pilot Knob (the United States)
Coordinates: 30°09′51″N 97°41′35″W / 30.16417°N 97.69306°W / 30.16417; -97.69306
CountryUnited States
StateTexas
CountyTravis
Time zoneUTC-6 (Central (CST))
 • Summer (DST)UTC-5 (CDT)

Pilot Knob is an unincorporated community in southern Travis County, Texas, United States, named after an extinct volcano found in the area.[1][2] The area is semi-rural with residences on large lots or acreage and convenience stores and other small businesses. It is located within the Greater Austin metropolitan area.

History[edit]

Pilot Knob was named for Pilot Knob, the remnant hill of an extinct volcano. It was first settled sometime after the American Civil War. A church and a few scattered houses were visible in the 1940s. Residents tried to incorporate Pilot Knob in 1963, but it did not have enough signatures.[3]

In 2012, the Easton Park neighborhood of Austin became a planned unit development and is being developed within the area.[4]

Geography[edit]

Pilot Knob is located at the intersection of US 183 and Farm to Market Road 812, 8 mi (13 km) southeast of Austin in southern Travis County.[3]

Education[edit]

In 1907, Pilot Knob had a school with two teachers and 99 students. It joined the Del Valle Independent School District in 1956 or 1957.[3] Schools serving the community are Hillcrest Elementary School, John P. Ojeda Junior High School, and Del Valle High School.

Notable person[edit]

Newton Collins, a freedman from Alabama, had a 506 acres (205 ha) farm in Pilot Knob, and an elementary school was named after him in 2018.[5]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Pilot Knob, Texas". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  2. ^ Texas Department of Transportation-Austin, Texas
  3. ^ a b c Pilot Knob, TX from the Handbook of Texas Online
  4. ^ [1] Long-awaited Pilot Knob PUD Gets Through Austin Planning
  5. ^ Taboada, M. B. (August 24, 2018). "Del Valle district opens newest school, named for a twice-freed slave". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved November 15, 2020.