Membership in the Austin Woman's Club is open to all women (without regard to race, creed, or color) who support and will actively pursue the mission of the Austin Woman’s Club.
Our Mission
The Austin Woman’s Club is organized and operated for the benefit of the community and the public through conduct and support of educational and charitable activities and programs for women, including the study of literary, civic, patriotic, artistic and cultural subjects; the appreciation, restoration and preservation of important landmarks of the community’s historical and architectural heritage, including the North-Evans Chateau; and other educational, civic, cultural and social activities that improve conditions and opportunities for women, provide a means for women to engage in philanthropic service, encourage leadership, and advance the spirit of service and understanding, all so as to enhance the quality of life in the Austin community.
Organized December 13, 1928
The Austin Woman's Club is woman-owned nonprofit organized to support the historic Chateau Bellevue.
Chateau Bellevue Celebrates 150 years
Chateau Bellevue, the home of the Austin Woman's Club, is celebrating 150 years.
Good Day Austin's Adaleigh Rowe sits down with former club president Sara Jane Cantwell to talk about some of the events coming up to celebrate.
Click below to see the entire interview.
Tango at the Chateau!
Mondays, July 6, 2026 - August 10, 2026
Connect. Move. Dance. A six-week Tango lesson series will be offered at Chateau Bellevue this summer on Monday evenings! Mix and mingle, then learn to Tango! Beginner and Intermediate classes available. No partner needed!
Students, Military and Senior Discounts available. Dancers should wear shoes with thin soles that slide easily for proper movement on the dance floor.
708 San Antonio (free surface parking at 8th and Nueces)
office@chateauatx.com
Autoimmunity & The Good Girls
by Sara Hirsh Bordo
Thursday, August 6, 2026
11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Book Signing from 11:00 – 11:30 and after the Program
Copies of this Bestseller will be available to purchase through Bookpeople.
You are cordially invited to an Austin Woman's Club Lunch and Learn featuring the inspirational, deeply researched wellness journey by the best-selling author, award-winning filmmaker, and founder of Women Rising®, Sara Hirsh Bordo, shining a light on how too many girls are trained to self-silence and serve others—and how we can heal. For generations, women have been told to be “good” - to put others first, to silence their own voices, to neglect their own needs. But a new groundswell of evidence reveals the cost: when our lives are compromised, so are our immune systems.
$30 - AWC Members
$45 - Non Members
708 San Antonio (free surface parking at 8th and Nueces)
office@chateauatx.com
512-472-1336
Then...
Now...
The "Melody Maids" of Beaumont — Morals, Manners, Music!
by Jerry Conn
Thursday, August 13, 2026
11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Come join Austin Woman's Club at Chateau Bellevue for a lunch and learn about The
"Melody Maids"
with Jerry Conn. A remarkable singing group of high school and college women from Beaumont, Texas, who performed at U.S. military bases around the world from 1942 to 1972. The group was founded and directed for thirty years by Eloise Milam, an equally remarkable junior high school music teacher whose vision and dedication shaped the ensemble from its earliest days.
Spanning three decades of American conflict — from World War II and Korea through Vietnam — over 1500 Melody Maids brought music, morale, and a touch of home to U.S. servicemen and women stationed far from their families. Their repertoire drew from Broadway, Hollywood, and the popular songs of the era, and many performances closed on a note of warmth and blessing with the beloved hymn "May the Good Lord Bless and Keep You."
One of Jerry Conn’s closest friends growing up in Beaumont was Bucky, the son of Eloise Milam — a friendship that began when the two were just seven years old. In 1953, the boys joined the Melody Maids on tour to U.S. military bases across California and Hawaii. Two years later, in the summer of 1955, they accompanied the group on an ambitious circuit through Newfoundland, Iceland, Greenland, Baffin Island, and Labrador.
Jerry earned his BS in Journalism and Master's in Communication from the University of Texas. His professional career spans the full breadth of the field — from the trenches of local newspapers and the Associated Press to Texas political public relations and advertising, where he worked with candidates across the aisle. He also served as a journalism instructor at UT Austin and a speech instructor at Austin Community College.
Today, Jerry brings together his academic background and a lifelong love of cinema, developing and presenting courses on movie musicals for UT audiences “of a certain age.”
$30 - AWC Members
$45 - Non Members
Chateau Bellevue
708 San Antonio (free surface parking at 8th and Nueces)
office@chateauatx.com
512-472-1336
All You Want to Know About Sports Officiating But Were Afraid to Ask!
by Bill Padgett
Thursday, August 20, 2026
11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Come join Austin Woman's Club favorite spouse, Bill Padgett, at Chateau Bellevue to hear lots of great humorous stories about his experiences with both college baseball and football, as well as Texas high school and youth league level, plus a couple of years with youth soccer. There will be 2 interesting & short videos, plus lots of Q&A.
Bill coached at Manchaca Optimist youth baseball from 1972 until his youngest child reached Pony League age in 1988. At that time the league lost its umpire group to a change in Austin youth league administration and the father of a child in the league, who was nationally known as a sports official, helped train a group of former coaches to work "kid ball" games locally. After 2 years, by default he inherited the task of training & scheduling for several leagues in the southwest Austin area and also joined SBUA (Southwest Baseball Umpires Association) for high school and college baseball in Texas. Several new friends also were football officials, and he was "recruited" a couple later to join SFOA (Southwest Football Officials Association), beginning 15 years of officiating at the high school level. He observed a very interesting evolution of the profession during those years, which he will share with you.
$30 - AWC Members
$45 - Non Members
Chateau Bellevue
708 San Antonio (free surface parking at 8th and Nueces)
office@chateauatx.com
512-472-1336
"Wild Women for Good" - Stories of Conservation in Texas
by Jennifer L. Bristol
Thursday, September 3, 2026
11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Come join Austin Woman's Club at Chateau Bellevue to learn about Jennifer L. Bristol’s latest book, Wild Women for Good: Stories of Conservation in Texas, which chronicles the remarkable women who have shaped the Texas landscape over the last 150 years. Through more than 60 compelling profiles, Bristol highlights their tireless efforts to protect wildlife, preserve natural landscapes, influence environmental policy, and safeguard the state’s natural heritage for future generations.
During her presentation, Bristol will focus on foundational figures who were instrumental in preserving Central Texas. Among them is Mamie Powell, an Austin resident who played a pivotal role in establishing the Texas state park system in the 1920s.
The Wild Basin Connection
Few groups demonstrated more tenacity—or had more fun—than the seven women who fought to protect the 300-acre Wild Basin Preserve. In 1975, the Committee for Wild Basin Wilderness, famously known as "the seven little old ladies in tennis shoes," (see center picture in photo collage) launched a grassroots fundraising campaign ranging from community garage sales to fashion show benefits.
Their dedication paid off. Over the following three years, they raised $284,000 in cash and secured more than $370,000 in donated land for Travis County. These efforts were bolstered by $654,000 in federal matching funds to complete the purchase. Today, Wild Basin Preserve stands as a premier example of urban wilderness and a testament to their legacy.
Bio
In addition to Wild Women for Good, Jennifer Bristol is the author of Parking Lot Birding: A Fun Guide to Discovering Birds in Texas and Cemetery Birding: An Unexpected Guide to Discovering Birds in Texas.
A dedicated advocate for the Texas landscape and its future stewards, Jennifer serves on the City of Austin Environmental Commission. She also directs the Victor Emanuel Nature Scholarship Fund, which provides underserved youth with life-changing opportunities for outdoor immersion.
$30 - AWC Members
$45 - Non Members
Chateau Bellevue
708 San Antonio (free surface parking at 8th and Nueces)
office@chateauatx.com
512-472-1336
The History of the Austin Woman's Club
taken from the Original1929 AWC Yearbook
Home of the Austin Woman's Club
"The charming and distinctive edifice acquired in November 1929, as a home by the Austin Woman's Club demands, because of its interesting history and its architectural beauty, attention and comment in the first year book of the Austin Woman's Club.
This building, located at Eighth and San Antonio Streets, crowns in a lordly way a steep hill which falls precipitately to the west. The eastward looking facade with its carved stone ornamentation presents on San Antonio Street an entrance of characteristic dignity; and, though this part of the building rises but two stories, the castle-like structure follows in the rear the westward slope of the hill toward Nueces Street, resting on terraces to the south at four levels, and buttressed to the north and west with pillars and ivy-covered walls of solid stone.
At each terrace, beautiful stone porches on the south lead upon velvety lawns that are connected by winding stone steps until the foundation level is reached; and here a magnificent live oak of ancient days throws its luxurious shade to a spread of some eighty-three feet.
From the upper porches a view of purpling hills in the distance, of the wooded banks of the Colorado, the fairy foliage of the grand old tree on the lawn well merits the name of Belleview which was given the house by its first builders.
