Attorney Emmett Hughes Shelton, Sr. (1805-2000), was the fifth of six sons born to Willie Green and John Elbert Shelton in Austin, Texas. After graduating from Southwest Texas State Teachers’ College (now Texas State University), he attended the University of Texas, receiving his law degree in 1928. Following his marriage to Elba May Gilbert in 1929, Shelton established a law practice in Austin and developed an interest in the history of the area immediately west of Austin. Over the next fifteen years, he purchased 4,000 acres of land west of Austin, eventually founding the community of West Lake Hills in 1953. In addition to his career as an attorney and his civic and historical interests, Shelton enlisted in the U. S. Marine Corps during World War II, serving in the Southwest Pacific. In 1962, he married his second wife, Joyce Bredeson.
Source:
Composed of seventy audiocassette tapes and an index, the Emmett Shelton Oral History Collection, 1989, documents Shelton’s experiences and career as an attorney in Austin, Texas, and his account of the history and development of West Lake Hills area of Austin. Containing an interview of Shelton, the collection discusses politics in Austin, desribes life in the U. S. Marine Corps during World War II, and contains historical sketches of individuals associated with West Lake Hills.
This collection is open for research use.
The donor retains copyright on all materials by the creator. Written permission must be obtained from copyright holder in order to publish from the collection.
Emmett Shelton Oral History Collection, 1989, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, The University of Texas at Austin.
Basic processing and cataloging of this collection was supported with funds from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) for the Briscoe Center’s