Austin is the capital of the U.S. state of
Texas, the seat of Travis County. Situated in Central Texas and part of the
American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the
16th-largest in the United States. As of the 2006 U.S. Census estimate, Austin has a
population of 709,893[2]. The city is the
cultural and economic center of the Austin-Round Rock Metropolitan
Area with a population of more than 1.5 million.
Austin was selected as the No. 2 Best Big City in "Best Places to Live" by Money magazine in 2006, and the "Greenest City in America" by MSN ("Greenest" referring to a
commitment to sustainable living). [3][4]
Residents of Austin are known as "Austinites," and include a mix of university professors,
students, politicians, lobbyists, musicians, state employees, high-tech workers, blue-collar workers,
and white-collar workers. The city is home to enough large sites of major technology
corporations to have earned it the nickname "Silicon Hills." Austin's official slogan promotes the city as "The Live Music
Capital of the World", a reference to its status as home to many musicians and music venues.[1] In recent years, many Austinites have also adopted the unofficial slogan
"Keep Austin Weird"; this refers partly to the eclectic and progressive lifestyle of
many Austin residents, but is also the slogan for a campaign to preserve smaller local businesses and resist excessive
commercialization.
History
-
Before the arrival of settlers from the United States, the area that later became
Austin was inhabited by a variety of nomadic Native American tribes, including the Tonkawa
tribe, the Comanches, and the Lipan Apaches.[5]
Edward Burleson laid out the town of Waterloo in the mid-1830's. In 1838 Mirabeau Lamar, vice-president of the Republic of
Texas, visited Waterloo, where he stayed with one of the earliest settlers, Jacob Harrell. Lamar was elected president shortly
thereafter. When The Texas Congress formed a commission to seek a site for a new capital to be named Austin, Lamar advised the
commissioners to investigate Waterloo, which was then indeed chosen. In May 1839 Lamar's designated government agent Edwin Waller
organized and led a workforce of about 200 men from Houston to Waterloo to construct the new city.
At first, the new capital thrived. By the early 1840's the population stood at about 850 people. But when Lamar's political
enemy Sam Houston regained the presidency in 1841, he used two Mexican army incursions to San Antonio as an excuse to move the
government to Washington (now known as Washington-on-the-Brazos). Within months Austin's population had shrunk to about 200, and
many Texans assumed that that city would die. Remaining Austin residents responded to the threat by forcibly keeping the national
archives in their city in defiance of President Houston's attempts to bring them to Washington.
Anson Jones became president in 1844. The following year he called a convention in Austin to discuss annexation to the United
States as well as to consider a new constitution. Once annexation became official, delegates wrote a new state constitution in
which Austin was again named the seat of government.
The Texas State Capitol was completed in 1888 advertised as the 7th largest
building in the world. Funded by the famous XIT ranch, the building still remains part of the Austin skyline. The state capitol
building is taller than the United States capitol building.
In September of 1881, Austin public schools held their first classes. The same year, Huston-Tillotson College opened its
doors.
In the 1950's, Austin's first research labs and think tanks were built. As Austin's economy prospered, several movie theaters,
public pools, and a local library system were opened.
The Austin music scene was born in the 70's when artists such as Willie Nelson brought
national attention.
Today, Austin is known as much for its cultural life as its high-tech innovations. It is also known for the senators and
schoolteachers who shaped its beginnings. The same success that has gained the city a national reputation has brought with it
many difficult choices.
Geography
Austin is located at 30°16′N 97°45′W / 30.267, -97.75 1 and is approximately 541 ft (165 m) above sea level. According to the
2000 census, the city has a total area of 258.4 mi² (669.3 km²). 251.5 mi² (651.4 km²) of it is land and
6.9 mi² (17.9 km²) (2.67%) is water.
Austin is situated on the Colorado River, with three man-made (artificial)
lakes wholly within the city limits: Lady Bird Lake, Lake
Austin, and Lake Walter E. Long. Additionally, the foot of Lake Travis, including Mansfield Dam, is located within the city's
limits. Lady Bird Lake, Lake Austin, and Lake Travis are each on the Colorado River. The city is also situated on the
Balcones Fault, which, in much of Austin, runs roughly the same route as the State
Highway Loop 1 (Texas) or Mo-Pac Expressway. The eastern part of the city is relatively flat, whereas the western part and
western suburbs consist of scenic rolling hills on the edge of the Texas Hill
Country. Because the hills to the west are primarily limestone rock with a thin
covering of topsoil, portions of the city are frequently subjected to flash floods from the runoff caused by thunderstorms. To
help control this runoff and to generate hydroelectric power, the Lower Colorado
River Authority operates a series of dams that form the Texas Highland
Lakes. The lakes also provide venues for boating, swimming, and other forms of recreation within several parks located on
the lake shores.
Austin is located at the intersection of four major ecological regions and is consequently mostly a temperate-to-hot green
oasis but has some characteristics of the desert, the tropics, and a wetter climate. It is very diverse ecologically/biologically
and the home of a variety of beautiful animals and plants, notably the wildflowers that blossom throughout the year but
especially in the spring, including the popular bluebonnets, some planted in an effort by Lady Bird Johnson.
The view from Mount Bonnell
A popular point of prominence in Austin is Mount Bonnell. At about 780 feet above
sea level, it is a natural limestone formation overlooking Lake Austin on the Colorado
River, approximately 200 feet below its summit. From the observation deck, many homes are visible.
The soils of Austin range from shallow gravelly clay loams over limestone in the western outskirts to deep fine sandy loams,
silty clay loams, silty clays or clays in the city's eastern part. Some of the clays have pronounced shrink-swell properties and
are difficult to work under most moisture conditions. Many of Austin's soils, especially the clay-rich types, are slightly to
moderately alkaline and have free calcium carbonate.
- See also: List of Austin
Neighborhoods
Climate
Austin has a humid subtropical climate, characterized by hot summers and
mild winters.[6] On average, Austin
receives 33.6 inches (853.4 mm) of rain per year, with most of the precipitation coming in the spring, and a secondary
maximum in the fall.[7] During the
springtime, severe thunderstorms sometimes occur, though tornadoes are extremely rare in the city (in the country they are not
uncommon). Austin is usually at least partially sunny. People often think of Texas as being dry, but Austin disproves this theory
when not in drought; it is usually green and rains plenty during the year, though not nearly enough to be considered a rainy city
such as Portland or Seattle. Sometimes there are sudden downpours and rainbows. Some stars are visible at night. It is known as a
Violet Crown city, which means that the sunrises and sunsets are phenomonal; they cast an array of vibrant colors and striking
cloud formations when clouds are present across the sky. Often, the moon appears very large and visible as early as the evening
and late as mid-morning.
Summer in Austin is hot and typically humid, with average temperatures of approximately 90 degrees Fahrenheit
(32 Celsius) from June until September. Temperatures above 100 °F (38 °C) are common. The highest recorded
temperature was 112 °F on September 5, 2000.[6][8][9] For the entire year there is an average of 111 days above 90 °F (32 °C) and 198
days above 80 °F (27 °C).[6]
Winter in Austin is mild and dry relative to the rest of the year. For the entire year, Austin averages 88 days when the
temperature drops below 45 °F (7 °C) and only 24 days when the minimum temperature falls below freezing. The lowest
recorded temperature was -2 °F on January 31, 1949.[6] Snowfall is
rare in Austin, but once every year or two Austin is hit with an ice storm that freezes roads over and shuts down much of the
city for around a day.[6]
| Month |
Jan |
Feb |
Mar |
Apr |
May |
Jun |
Jul |
Aug |
Sep |
Oct |
Nov |
Dec |
Year |
| Avg high °F
(°C) |
60 (16) |
65 (18) |
73 (23) |
79 (26) |
85 (29) |
91 (33) |
95 (35) |
96 (36) |
90 (32) |
81 (27) |
70 (21) |
62 (17) |
79 (26) |
| Rec high °F
(°C) (year) |
90 (32) (1971) |
99 (37) (1996) |
98 (37) (1971) |
99 (37) (1939) |
104 (40) (1925) |
108 (42) (1998) |
108 (42) (1925) |
110 (43) (2003) |
112 (44) (2000) |
100 (38) (1938) |
91 (33) (1947) |
90 (32) (1955) |
112 (44) (2000) |
| Avg low °F (°C) |
40 (4) |
44 (7) |
51 (11) |
58 (14) |
65 (18) |
71 (22) |
73 (23) |
73 (23) |
69 (21) |
60 (16) |
49 (10) |
42 (6) |
58 (14) |
| Rec low °F (°C) (year) |
-2 (-19) (1949) |
-1 (-18) (1899) |
18 (-8) (1948) |
30 (-1) (1926) |
40 (4) (1925) |
51 (11) (1926) |
57 (14) (1924) |
58 (14) (1915) |
41 (5) (1942) |
30 (-1) (1993) |
20 (-7) (1976) |
4 (-16) (1989) |
-2 (-19) (1949) |
| Rainfall in (mm) |
1.89 (48) |
1.99 (51) |
2.14 (54) |
2.51 (64) |
5.03 (128) |
3.81 (97) |
1.97 (50) |
2.31 (59) |
2.91 (74) |
3.97 (101) |
2.68 (68) |
2.44 (62) |
33.6 (853) |
- Averages are from the 30 year average from 1971–2000 at Camp Mabry, and records are
from Camp Mabry and from previous climate sites, spanning from 1897 to present.[7][9]
Government and politics
Law and government
Austin is administered by a city council of seven members, each of them elected by the
entire city, and by an elected mayor under the mayor-council government system of municipal governance. Council and mayoral elections are
non-partisan, with a runoff in case there is no majority winner. Austin remains an anomaly among large Texas cities in that
council members are elected on an "at large" basis by all voters, as opposed to elections by districts.
The current mayor of Austin is Will Wynn. His second term ends in 2009.
Wynn is a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns
Coalition[10], a bi-partisan group with a stated goal of "making the public safer by getting illegal guns off the
streets." The Coalition is co-chaired by Boston Mayor Thomas
Menino and New York City Mayor Michael
Bloomberg.
Austin is located in Travis County, Texas.
- See also: List of current and
former capital cities in the United States
Politics
The main political actors in Austin city politics are interest groups such as the pro-environmental Save Our Springs Alliance, Save Barton Creek Association, Equality TX, the Austin Police
Association, and the Austin Business Council. Additionally, the Travis County Democratic Party is an active, well-established
organization whose get out the vote operations generally make the difference in close elections. Texas Democrats are very active
here as well are several youth groups, including the Youth Activists of Austin.
The controversy that dominated Austin politics during the 1990s was the conflict between environmentalists, strong in the city center, and advocates of urban growth, who tend to live in the
outlying areas. The city council has in the past tried to mitigate the controversy by advocating smart growth, but growth and environmental protection are still the most divisive issues in city politics.
Today conservatives in Austin argue that the city's various highway traffic problems are rooted in the denial of past
highway/infrastructure development by political action committees who do not support highway expansion. Environmentalists counter
that their efforts contributed to the city's large green spaces, which many Austinites enjoy.
Austin is well known as a center for liberal politics in a
generally conservative state. Suburban neighborhoods in Austin, especially to the west and
north, and several satellite municipalities, however, tend toward political conservatism.
As a result of the major party realignment that began in the 1970s, central Austin became a stronghold of the Democratic Party while the suburbs tend to vote Republican. One consequence of this is that in the most recent redistricting plan,
formulated by former U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay and enacted by the Republican-majority legislature,
the central city has been split among multiple, sprawling districts. Opponents characterized the resulting districting layout as
excessively partisan gerrymandering, and the plan was challenged in court on this basis
by Democratic and minority activists; of note, the Supreme Court of the
United States has never struck down a redistricting plan for being excessively partisan. The plan was subsequently upheld
by a three-judge federal panel in late 2003, and on June 28, 2006,
the matter was largely settled when the Supreme Court in a 7-2 decision upheld the entire congressional redistricting plan with
the exception of a Hispanic-majority district in southwest Texas. This may later affect Austin's districting, as U.S. Rep.
Lloyd Doggett's district was found not to be sufficiently compact to compensate for the
reduced minority influence in the southwest district.[1]
Overall, the city is a blend of downtown liberalism and suburb conservatism, but leans strongly to the political left. In the
2004 presidential election, Senator John Kerry won a substantial majority of the votes in
Travis County as illustrated in this pictorial of votes by-county. Of Austin's six state legislative districts, three are strongly
Democratic and three are swing districts all of which are held by Democrats. However, two of its three congressional districts
are presently held by Republicans; this is largely due to the 2003 redistricting, which left downtown Austin without an exclusive
congressional seat of its own. Travis County was also the only county in Texas to reject Texas Constitutional Amendment Proposition 2 —
effectively outlawing gay marriage and status equal or similar to it — and did so by a wide margin (40% for, 60% against).
Vista of Austin's riverfront from
Auditorium Shores Park.
Austin is also an active area for the Libertarian Party. Although
the Libertarians remain a third party, they occasionally garner substantial votes, and one of the past Libertarian presidential
candidates, Michael Badnarik comes from Austin, while another, Ron Paul represented a congressional district that includes part of the greater Austin area.
Two of the candidates for President in the 2004 race call Austin home. Michael Badnarik, mentioned above as the Libertarian
Party candidate, and David Cobb of the Green
Party both have lived in Austin. During the runup to the election in November, a presidential debate was held at the
University of Texas student union involving the two minor party
candidates. While the Commission on Presidential Debates only invites
Democrats and Republicans to participate in televised debates, the debate at UT was open to all presidential candidates.
Sister cities
List of sister cities of Austin, Texas, designated by Sister Cities International. [11]
Adelaide, Australia - since 1983
Koblenz, Germany- since 1991
Lima, Peru- since 1981
Maseru, Lesotho- since 1978
Ōita, Japan - since 1990
Saltillo, Mexico - since 1968
Taichung, Taiwan - since 1986
Old
Orlu, Nigeria - since 2000
Gwangmyeong, South Korea
Xishuangbanna,
China - since 1997
Cities whose claims to sister city status are not recognized officially by the City of Austin
Economy
Southward view of downtown Austin from The Capitol Grounds on 11th Street.
Thousands of graduates each year from the engineering and computer science programs at The University of Texas at Austin provide a steady source of employees that help to fuel
Austin's technology and defense industry sectors. The metro Austin area has much lower housing costs than Silicon Valley, but much higher housing costs than many parts of rural Texas. As a result of the
relatively high concentration of high-tech companies in the region, Austin was strongly affected by the dot-com boom in the late 1990s and subsequent bust. The general consensus is that high-tech recovery is
proceeding rapidly. Austin's biggest employers include the State of Texas, The
University of Texas, the SETON Healthcare Network, Dell, IBM
and Freescale Semiconductor (spun off from Motorola in 2004). Other high-tech companies with operations in Austin include Apple Inc., Hewlett-Packard, Vignette, AMD, Applied Materials, Cirrus Logic, Hoover's, Inc., Intel, Motive Inc, National Instruments, Samsung, Silicon Laboratories, Sun Microsystems, and United Devices. The proliferation of
technology companies has led to the region's nickname, "the Silicon Hills," (Austin was originally "Silicon Gulch", but
San Jose, California already had that distinction) and has spurred rapid
development that has greatly expanded the city to the north, south, east, and west.
In addition to global companies, Austin features a strong network of independent, locally-owned firms and organizations such
as the Austin Independent Business Alliance. The success of these
businesses reflects the high level of commitment by the citizens of Austin to preserving the unique spirit of the city, and has
been tied to the "Keep Austin Weird" campaign. Small businesses from restaurants to
clothing shops to salons to arts companies in Austin enjoy a lively existence gained by direct competition with large national
and global rivals. The government, as Austin is the TX capital and politically active, non-profits, and schools (the university
and colleges, preschool-12th grade) also provide many jobs. Whole Foods, a market/grocery
store specializing in organic, local, and natural foods and other goods (now a corporation) started in and is based out of
Austin, and work in the food industry/farming/culinary arts also provides a surprisingly high amount of employment/income for
many people.
- See also: List of foreign
consulates in Austin
Demographics
As of the census2 of 2000, there were 656,562 people, 265,649 households, and 141,590 families
residing in the city (roughly comparable in size to San Francisco,
Memphis, and Columbus). The population density was 1,007.9/km² (2,610.4/mi²). There were 276,842 housing units at an average
density of 425.0/km² (1,100.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city was 65.36% White, 10.05% Black or African American, 4.72% Asian, 0.59% Native American, 0.07% Pacific Islander, 16.23% from other races. 2.99% were from two or more
races. 30.55% of the population were Hispanic or Latino, who can be of any race.
There were 265,649 households out of which 26.8% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.1% were
married couples living together, 10.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and
46.7% were non-families. 32.8% of all households were made up of individuals and 4.6% had someone living alone who was 65 years
of age or older. The average household size was 2.40 and the average family size was 3.14.
In the city the population was spread out with 22.5% under the age of 18, 16.6% from 18 to 24, 37.1% from 25 to 44, 17.1% from
45 to 64, and 6.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 30 years. For every 100 females there were 105.8
males.
The median income for a household in the city was $42,689, and the median income for a family was $54,091. Males had a median
income of $35,545 vs. $30,046 for females. The per capita income for the city was
$24,163. About 9.1% of families and 14.4% of the population were below the poverty
line, including 16.5% of those under age 18 and 8.7% of those age 65 or over. From the year 2000 to 2005, the median house
price in Austin grew 34%.
The Austin-Round Rock Metropolitan Area had 1,513,565 people as
of 2006. Combined with the population of the San Antonio metropolitan area (nearly 75
miles to the southwest; the two areas together are commonly referred to as South Central Texas), the region is home to about 3.6
million people.
Austin is consistently ranked among the three safest cities per capita of any size in many categories and for many reasons,
especially because annually, per 100,000 people there are fewer than 5 people murdered.
Culture
The sights of Austin's nightlife on 6th Street.
As Austin's official slogan is The Live Music Capital of the World,[1] the city has a vibrant live music scene with more music
venues per capita than any other U.S. city. Austin's music revolves around the many nightclubs
on 6th Street and an annual film/music/multimedia festival known as South
by Southwest. The city also has a burgeoning circle of live performance theater venues such as: Zachary Scott Theatre
Center, Vortex Repertory Company, Salvage Vanguard Theater, Arts on Real, Scottish Rite Children's Theater, Hyde Park Theatre,
and the Esther's Follies comedy & magic show which has been operating for over 3
decades now. The longest-running concert music program on American television, Austin
City Limits, is videotaped on the University of Texas at Austin
campus. Austin City Limits and Capital Sports & Entertainment run the Austin City Limits Music Festival, an annual music and art festival held at
Zilker Park in Austin. The long-running outdoor musical, the Zilker Park Summer Musical expects to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2008. The Urban Music Festival is
held during the Texas Relays weekend every April. Other annual events include Eeyore's
Birthday Party and the Austin Reggae Festival (previously named Bob Marley Festival) in April and Carnaval in February. Halloween, the two Mexican independence days (Cinco de Mayo and El 16 de Septiembre), St
Patrick's Day, Mardi Gras, July 4th, and Juneteenth (Emancipation Day) are all widely celebrated. First Thursday is a popular
festival which takes place the first Thursday of each month.
Austinites take pride in eccentricities and celebrate differences and being different (in lifestyle, character, beliefs,
etc.). "Keep Austin Weird" has become a local motto in recent years, featured on innumerable bumper stickers and t-shirts. This motto has
not only been used in promoting Austin's eccentricity and diversity, but is also meant to bolster support of local and
independent businesses. This motto has been parodied on bumper stickers making fun of conservative suburbs: "Keep Round Rock
mildly unusual" and "Keep Georgetown normal."
Ballet Austin is the fourth largest ballet academy in the country[12]. Each year Ballet Austin's twenty member professional company performs
ballets from a wide variety of choreographers, including their international award winning artistic director, Stephen Mills. Ballet Austin has traveled around the world performing in Europe, twice at the Kennedy
Center (Washington D.C.), and in New York City's famous Joyce Theatre.
Nationally known Austinites include Willie Nelson, Lance Armstrong, Matthew McConaughey, Sandra Bullock , Richard Linklater, Robert Rodriguez, Andy Roddick, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Michael Dell. Other well-known
Austinites can be found in the List of Austinites.
Media
Austin has been the location for a number of motion pictures, partly due to the influence of The University of Texas at
Austin's Department of Radio-Television-Film. Films
produced in Austin include Man of the House,
Secondhand Lions, Waking Life,
Spy Kids, Dazed and Confused,
Office Space, The Life of David
Gale, Miss Congeniality, Doubting Thomas, Slacker, Idiocracy, Road Trip, A Scanner Darkly,The Wendall Baker Story and most recently, Grindhouse and How To Eat Fried Worms . In order to draw future film projects to the area,
the Austin Film Society has converted several airplane hangars from the former
Mueller Airport into filmmaking center Austin Studios. Projects that have used facilities at Austin Studios include music videos
by The Flaming Lips and feature films such as 25th
Hour and Sin City. Austin also hosted the MTV series, The Real World: Austin in 2005.
Austin's main daily newspaper is the Austin
American-Statesman. The Austin Chronicle is Austin's
alternative weekly, while The Daily
Texan is the student newspaper of the University of Texas. Austin also has smaller newspapers such as the
Oak Hill Gazette, Austin Business Journal, and Texas Family Magazine. Texas Monthly, a major regional magazine, is also headquartered in Austin.
Austin hosts the annual Austin Film Festival, as well as the nationally
acclaimed South by Southwest, which draw films of many different types from all over
the world. In 2004 the city was first in Moviemaker Magazine's annual top ten cities to live and make movies. The 2007
South by Southwest festival included Pete
Townshend, Iggy Pop, Tom Morello, and
Rickie Lee Jones.
Austin also hosts the annual Austin City Limits Music Festival,
based on its own Austin City Limits television show, which has been produced for over
30 years at their resident PBS affiliate KLRU.
The festival and television show alike attract musical artists from around the world.
Austin also has a strong theater culture, with dozens of itinerant and resident companies producing a wide variety of work.
From Esther's Follies on E. 6th Street to Zachary Scott on S. Lamar, live entertainment
can be found around the city. Many, many other theater groups exist and often perform publicly, collaborating often with dance
and music groups. Public art and performances of many kinds in the parts and on bridges is popular and it is easy to find a
myriad of diverse and creative free productions.
Local businesses and artists produce a lot of interesting handmade indie-fashion and organic-and-eco-friendly fashion, as can
be seen on the 32nd street artist market, at festivals, and in many shops. Independent film is prominent in the city. Wes
Anderson, the director of The Royal Tennenbaums and other cult films, lived in Austin.
In January 2007, Austin Lyric Opera hosted the American Premiere of the Philip Glass
opera, Waiting for the Barbarians. Waiting for the Barbarians
is an allegory of oppressor and oppressed based on the novel by John Maxwell
Coetzee of South Africa. Coetzee, the Nobel Prize Winner for Literature in 2003, is a University of Texas at Austin
graduate and former UT professor.
Sports
Austin is the largest city in the country without a franchise in any of the four major sports leagues. Instead, Austinites
enthusiastically support the University of Texas Longhorns' sports programs. The
University of Texas football and baseball teams each won their respective national championships during the 2005-2006 seasons. Minor-league
professional sports came to Austin in 1996, when the Austin Ice Bats began playing at
the Travis County Expo Center. Since then, they have been joined by many other teams.
Also, Austin is home to many rock-climbers, swimmers, divers, snorkelers, mountain bikers, cyclists, as the cities numerous
trails and limestone rock formations support such outdoor activities. Cycling is popular partly due to an environmental awareness
and also due to the popularity of native Austinite Lance Armstrong. It is a city of volunteering, activism, intellectualism,
charity, and giving to the community; the sense of community is strong and people participate in many events to help their
neighbors and many causes.
In addition to team sports, the combined draws of the bicycle-friendly Texas Hill
Country that begins in Northwest Austin, the centrally-located Lady
Bird Lake Hike and Bike Trail, and local pools like Barton Springs make Austin the
home of several endurance and multi-sport races and communities. The venerable Capitol 10,000 is the largest 10 K race in Texas,
and approximately fifth largest in the nation. The Austin Marathon has been run in the city every year since 1992. The
Austin-founded American Swimming Association hosts the open water swimming event, the Academy Capital 2K, and other
closed-course, open water, and cable swim races around town. Austin is also the hometown of several cycling groups and the
champion cyclist Lance Armstrong. Combining these three
disciplines is a growing crop of triathlons, including the Capital of Texas Triathlon held every Memorial Day on and around
Lady Bird Lake, Auditorium Shores, and downtown Austin, even crossing 6th Street on
several legs of the race.
Tourist attractions
Many of the tourists that visit Austin come for its vibrant nightlife; however, there are many other attractions in Austin,
including the Texas Memorial Museum, the
