Could Barton Springs be renamed?

AUSTIN (KXAN) – The Austin Parks and Recreation Board created a Barton Springs Bathhouse working group in July 2023 with two objectives: recommending a new name for the bathhouse and recommending ideas on how to incorporate educational installations on the racial and cultural history of perhaps Austin’s most famous swimming pool. 

When presenting the potential names for the bathhouse at the board meeting on Monday, the working group discussed how it would frequently come back during the renaming process to whether “Barton” was an appropriate name for the springs.

“I think at some point, all of us started referring to [Barton] spring as ‘The Spring,’” said Pedro Villalobos, Chair of the Parks and Recreation Board. “That's because of the baggage that it carries with it.”

“We are recommending based off of William Barton's known ownership of enslaved people – and given the Confederate Monument Resolution passed by City Council – we are recommending that there be an effort to rename Barton Springs,” Villalobos, who served on the working group, continued. 

KXAN spoke to Sarah Marshall, who works with Historic Preservation and Tourism Program for the Austin Parks and Recreation Department, earlier this year about the history of Barton Springs. 

“William Barton was known as someone who wanted to participate in the extinction of Native Americans,” Marshall said in May. “And the fact that he enslaved people, we just want to make sure that that’s known as well,” she said. 

Although renaming Barton Springs was not within the scope of the Barton Springs working group’s original objectives, the group said it would get the ball rolling on a potential renaming process. That would start with a recommendation from the Parks and Recreation Board to the Austin City Council, which would then need to vote to implement a Barton Springs renaming process, according to the working group’s report. 

The working group also discussed the new names it came up with for the bathhouse at the Monday meeting: 

“Means Bathhouse - this name reflects the important works of the Means family, including Joan Means Khabele and her mother, Bertha Sadler Means, a civil rights activist in Austin.

Joan Means Khabele Bathhouse - this name reflects the instrumental role of Joan Means Khabele in desegregating Barton Springs Pool.

Means-Martinez Bathhouse - this name reflects the joint contributions of Joan Means Khabele and David Martinez with desegregating Barton Springs Pool 

Yanaguana Springs Bathhouse – a Coahuiltecan word, yanaguana means “spirit waters” and can also be used as a term to refer to a spring feature.

Tza Wan Pupako Springs Bathhouse – the Coahuiltecan used the term “Tza Wan Pupako” to refer specifically to Barton Springs.”

Though potential names for the bathhouse were read at the board meeting Monday, nothing was set in stone. Villalobos said on the dais that the renaming application was getting reviewed and further action would be taken at a later date.