When Robert Frost published his poem, Mending Wall, in 1914, the poet assumed the role of a New England farmer who was walking with his neighbor to repair the sections of the stone wall that fell between their two farms. The line “good fences make good neighbors” comes from his neighbor helping him repair the wall. There is clearly tension between the two of them as the narrator (Frost) believes that walls are unnecessary, and his neighbor repeats the adage that he was taught by his father, “good fences make good neighbors.”
I have thought about that line as I walk through my Austin neighborhood of Bouldin Creek. Just like the neighbors in Mending Wall, there are homes with fences in the front yard, homes with no fences in the front yard but fences in the back yard, homes with natural fences (hedges), homes with stone fences, homes with low fences, homes with see through fences, homes with high fences, etc.
As for the purposes of these fences, some are obvious (privacy, security) and some are not. I have appended pictures of a few of these fences as well as my thoughts about the merits of them. I live in a house with a fenced in back yard, but an open front yard. Not so surprisingly, the nearest neighbors that I consider my closest friends, have open front yards as well.
Frost’s story was about a wall between farms. Mine is about a city residential neighborhood with small lots. I can see the merits of some fences, and others, not so much. Here are my pictures and thoughts.
If I opted for a fence in my front yard, I might opt for one like this. The fence renders an attractive architectural component as well as serves as a buffer between the xeriscaping (low water requirement landscape) in the city right-of-way area to the grassy lawn area behind it. The open slats and medium height appear more inviting than a solid design. The picture that follows has a similar divide between xeriscape and lawn, but is higher, providing privacy from the first floor sliding glass windows and the street. There is also a gate that enhances the security of the property whenever it is closed.
Bouldin Creek has been a neighborhood in Austin since the 1930’s. There are older cottages as well as newer, more modern structures. While there is a neighborhood association, there are no architectural guidelines nor an architecture approval process. This picture profiles three houses in a row with different fencing structures. The blue cottage has a more traditional looking white fence in the front with a gate. The fence is low, so it is less of a privacy protector than it is a structure to keep small children or pets from leaving the yard. The house next door has side fencing panels that increase in height as you go from the street toward the house, more for viewing privacy since there is no fencing across the front of the property.
A traditional chain link fence is somewhat tempered by the plants growing over most of it. This house is located near S. First Street, a commercial thoroughfare. There’s a popular bar/restaurant on the right- hand corner by the stop sign. The restaurant does not have a parking lot big enough to accommodate all of its guests and many likely park in front of this house and its neighbors. Given the frequent traffic of non-neighbors, it’s not a surprise to me that this owner opted for a more secure fence.
The owner of this newer structure has opted for a higher fence to provide privacy for the outdoor patio and main entrance to the house. The slight openings between boards provides visitors the opportunities to see if the owner is outside on the patio while still providing privacy from viewers on the street for the patio as well as the glass first floor windows
I view this fence as an architectural complement to the house that does very little for security or privacy. The fence looks attractive to anyone driving or walking by but doesn’t block the views of first floor windows or anyone in the front yard. It also serves as a nice divider between xeriscape and whatever lies on the other side of the fence.
There is a large, older house on the other side of this fence constructed of 10-or-12-foot-high tree trunks. Clearly, it’s for privacy. There’s even a gate with the same logs that encloses the entire properly when shut.
This very modern and fairly new house features xeriscaping with a privacy fence enclosing an outdoor patio and glass windows and sliders on the first floor. Note that there are few windows on the side facing the street that is not covered by a fence.
This house is directly across the street from the house featured in the picture immediately preceding this. This owner opted for a larger enclosed area with fencing providing privacy and security as the driveway is behind a gate of similar style fencing. The owner has softened the lines of the fence with plantings that spill over the fence.
This house, referred to as the “Bouldin Castle” by some, was once a church. The fence is clearly designed for privacy as well as security. The stone fence surrounds the property which consists of several building lots.
This is one of the older cottages in the neighborhood. The fence appears to have been constructed with the parts of a tree whose stump remains in front of it. It’s features appear to be more artistic than privacy or security-oriented. In the 1960’s, a number of artists moved into the neighborhood, and it’s possible that this property belongs to an older artist.
This is a popular design in the community for front yard fencing. The wire fence is strong enough to keep children and pets inside, but provides a more welcome and open look. The wood on the top and bottom softens the wire look.
This fence is similar to the previous one except that the owner has chosen to grow plants that block the view through the fence. As you can see, the fence is not tall enough to provide privacy from someone walking by.
This stone fence surrounds a house on one of the busiest street corners in the community. The owner has opted for security and privacy. However, note the various sized metal “porthole” openings allowing taller people to see in as well as those in the enclosed yard to see out. The xeriscape includes some larger rocks near the street corner presumably to keep someone from hopping the curb and damaging the landscaping or fence.
This house is on a corner lot with one side facing a fairly busy street. Clearly, privacy and security are the focus of this fence. However, note the plexiglass porthole at what I presume to be a toddler’s level.
On first glance, the fencing for this property appears to be architecturally pleasing, but not designed for privacy or security. However, the hedges likely make it more difficult for someone to scale the fence if the front gate is closed.
Another fence that appears to be designed more to keep the children safe and secure from dangers lurking from a yard on a corner of two streets. The fence is fairly low with gaps between the boards. I love the swings and tree house attached to the ancient live oak tree.
Another fence design with xeriscaping installed in the city right of way in front of the fence that is designed for security and privacy. A pool is behind the fence on this side of the property. In the picture that follows, you can see that the corner of the property is open, featuring a dramatic life-sized sculpture of a giraffe. This house is one of the few in the neighborhood that spans several lots, in fact, nearly an entire block.
I’ve not been an Austin resident long enough to know the background story about this house, but was able to find an article from four years ago indicating that at some point, its owner attempted to receive approval from the city to use it as a gallery for his collection of game trophies. Evidently, that approval was never received. The exterior of the house now appears more residential than the pictures in this 2018 article that doesn’t even mention the giraffe sculpture. The sculpture is nicely situated in a section of the yard that is open and traditionally landscaped.
These three properties all have open front yards. While an older block wall begins halfway between the street and the two houses in the foreground, the newer fence appears to screen the side yard of the cottage from the carport of the new home. The second and third houses are separated by a common driveway with no fencing dividing them. Note again, a popular choice of xeriscaping the city right of way before moving to traditional landscaping closer to the house (and presumably sprinklered).
It’s obvious that this residential property was once a church. It’s located on a fairly busy street (Mary Street) and also next to a busy restaurant and carry out. The owner has opted for a sturdy fence and gate for security and some privacy although there are few windows in the front of the building likely due to preserving some of the original architecture.
On a busy street corner near an elementary school, this owner opted to change his fence materials from wood to metal and “wrap” it around a very old live oak tree, presumably to protect it from cars and pedestrians. The fence appears to be designed more for security than for privacy.
On a busy corner of the Becker Elementary School, a chain link fence provides some security for the children who may be eating lunch or participating in craft projects during the school year. Due to its location, many of its children walk to school in the morning with their parent(s).
Before I began my picture-taking project, I think I was more in the camp of Robert Frost in regards to fences. I’ve now convinced myself that even the high, solid security fences appear to have a justification on some lots, and when the distances between houses is little more than the required city setback, privacy fences probably contribute to the adage “good fences make good neighbors.”
