WWII vet’s home may become historic landmark

At the time Richard Overton died last year, he was the oldest living World War II veteran in the U.S. and the third-oldest man on the planet. He had been living in the same East Austin home he’d built decades before in 1948. “His last final wish was that he wanted his home to become a museum,” his cousin, Volma Overton, told the Historic Landmark Commission at its Sept. 23 meeting. Though transforming homes into museums isn’t in the purview of the Historic Landmark Commission, it can grant a home historic zoning in order to immortalize its architectural and cultural significance. Accordingly, the commission voted unanimously to initiate the historic zoning process on the home. “He was a treasure to this country,” Volma Overton said. “People loved him and he loved people.” Commissioners Emily Reed, Terri Myers, Emily Hibbs and Mathew Jacob were absent.