Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas. It is the county seat of Travis County. Austin is the 11th-largest city in the United States, and the 4th-largest in Texas. Its population in 2020 was 961,855.[8] The University of Texas at Austin is located there.
Downtown Austin skyline The Clock Tower at UT Austin | |
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| Coordinates: 30°16′02″N 97°44′35″W / 30.26722°N 97.74306°WCoordinates: 30°16′02″N 97°44′35″W / 30.26722°N 97.74306°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Texas |
| Counties | Travis, Hays, Williamson |
| Settled | 1835 |
| Incorporated | December 27, 1839 |
| Named for | Stephen F. Austin |
| Government | |
| • Type | Council–manager |
| • Mayor | Kirk Watson (D)[a] |
| • City Council | Members
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| • City manager | T.C. Broadnax[1] |
| Area | |
| • State capital | 326.51 sq mi (845.66 km2) |
| • Land | 319.94 sq mi (828.64 km2) |
| • Water | 6.57 sq mi (17.02 km2) |
| • Metro | 4,285.70 sq mi (11,099.91 km2) |
| Elevation | 607 ft (185 m) |
| Population (2020)[4] | |
| • State capital | 961,855 |
| • Estimate (2024)[4] | 993,588  |
| • Rank | 33rd in North America 13th in the United States 5th in Texas |
| • Density | 3,006.36/sq mi (1,160.76/km2) |
| • Urban | 1,809,888 (US: 29th) |
| • Urban density | 2,921.0/sq mi (1,127.8/km2) |
| • Metro | 2,550,637 (US: 25th) |
| GDP | |
| • Metro | $248.110 billion (2023) |
| Time zone | UTC−6 (CST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−5 (CDT) |
| ZIP Codes | 73301, 73344, 78681, 78701–78705, 78708–78739, 78741–78742, 78744–78768, 78772–78774, 78778–78779, 78783, 78799 |
| FIPS code | 48-05000[7] |
| GNIS feature ID | 2409761[3] |
| Website | {{URL|example.com|optional display text}} |
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Austin is frequently called the "Live Music Capital of the World". Several Fortune 500 companies have their main offices (also known as the headquarters) and regional offices in Austin.
History
Austin was first called Waterloo in 1835. In 1839, it was chosen to be the capital city of The Republic of Texas and named for Stephen F. Austin. The University of Texas at Austin was founded in 1883.
In March 2018, a series of bombings occurred in Austin killing two people.[9]
Confederate monuments
Many Confederate monuments and buildings have been removed or renamed.
- Children of the Confederacy plaque, installed in 1959 inside the State Capitol, bore the words that "the War Between the States was not a rebellion, nor was its underlying cause to sustain slavery." The plaque was removed between January 11 and 13, 2019 after a unanimous vote by the Texas State Preservation Board, chaired by Governor Greg Abbott.[10][11] Calls for its removal started in 2017 by then-House Speaker Joe Straus, in a letter to the State Preservation Board that oversees the Capitol grounds,[12][13] in which he was joined by 40 other lawmakers.[14]
- The Texas Confederate Museum closed in 1988. Opened in 1903 in a room on the first floor of the Capital, it moved in 1920 to the adjacent Old Land Office Building, where it remained until 1998, much longer than the building had been used by the Land Office. When the building was vacated for renovation, the Museum was not permitted to return. (The building is now the Capital Visitors Center.) It never reopened as it never found another home. Its collections are now divided between the Haley Memorial Library and History Center in Midland and the Texas Civil War Museum in White Settlement, a suburb of Fort Worth.
- Robert E. Lee Elementary School (1939) was renamed for local photographer Russell Lee in 2016.[15] He was a prominent photographer with the Farm Security Administration and the first Professor of Photography at the University of Texas.
- Johnston High School: Named for Albert Sidney Johnston, Confederate general killed in the Battle of Shiloh. The school closed in 2008; the Liberal Arts and Science Academy is now (2021) at that location.[16]
- Jeff Davis Avenue. The Austin City Council voted unanimously to rename the street for William Holland, born a slave, an educator who served one term in the Texas Legislature and became a Travis County commissioner.[17]
- Robert E. Lee Road. The Austin City Council voted unanimously to rename the street, whose signs had been defaced, for Azie Morton, the only African American to hold the office of Treasurer of the United States.[17]
- University of Texas
- In May 2015, the student government at the University of Texas at Austin voted almost unanimously to remove a statue of Jefferson Davis that had been erected on the campus's South Mall.[18][19] Beginning shortly after the Charleston church shooting of June 2015, "Black Lives Matter" was written repeatedly in bold red letters on the base of the statue. Previous messages had included "Davis must fall" and "Liberate U.T." (the University of Texas).[20] The University of Texas officials convened a task force to determine whether to honor the students' petition for removal of the statue. Acting on the strong recommendation of the task force, UT's President Gregory L. Fenves announced on August 13, 2015, that the statue would be moved to serve as an educational exhibit in the university's Dolph Briscoe Center for American History museum.[21] He said: "it is not in the university's best interest to continue commemorating him [Davis] on our Main Mall."[22] Legal action by the Sons of Confederate Veterans was unsuccessful.[22] The statue was removed on August 30, 2015.[23]
- After the removal of the Jefferson Davis statue in 2015, there were four remaining Confederate statues left on the South Mall at the University of Texas, portraying Generals Robert E. Lee and Albert Sidney Johnston, and Confederate Postmaster John H. Reagan. They were dedicated in 1933. On August 20–21, 2017, the university removed the three Confederate statues from the Austin campus grounds and moved them to a museum.[24][25] The decision was inspired by the Unite the Right rally on August 10–11 in Charlottesville.[26] At the same time, a statue of Texas Governor Jim Hogg was also removed, although he had no direct link with the Confederacy. In 2018, it was announced that it would be reinstalled at a different location.[27]
- In May 2015, the student government at the University of Texas at Austin voted almost unanimously to remove a statue of Jefferson Davis that had been erected on the campus's South Mall.[18][19] Beginning shortly after the Charleston church shooting of June 2015, "Black Lives Matter" was written repeatedly in bold red letters on the base of the statue. Previous messages had included "Davis must fall" and "Liberate U.T." (the University of Texas).[20] The University of Texas officials convened a task force to determine whether to honor the students' petition for removal of the statue. Acting on the strong recommendation of the task force, UT's President Gregory L. Fenves announced on August 13, 2015, that the statue would be moved to serve as an educational exhibit in the university's Dolph Briscoe Center for American History museum.[21] He said: "it is not in the university's best interest to continue commemorating him [Davis] on our Main Mall."[22] Legal action by the Sons of Confederate Veterans was unsuccessful.[22] The statue was removed on August 30, 2015.[23]
- IDEA Allan School, a charter school, was renamed IDEA Montopolis in 2018. It had been named for Confederate Army officer John T. Allan. Four other related properties in Austin are being similarly renamed.[28]
- In 2019, Lanier High School was renamed Navarro High School to honor 2007 graduate Juan Navarro, a U.S. Army officer killed in Afghanistan. Sidney Lanier, the "poet of the Confederacy",[29] served as a private in the CSA.[30]
Climate
Austin has a humid subtropical climate (Cfa in the Koeppen climate classification) with hot summers and mild winters. The city rarely gets snow at all and frosts are infrequent.
Government
The current mayor of Austin is Steve Adler.
Austin also has a city council with ten district representatives plus the mayor.
Business
Many businesses have their main offices in or near Austin, including AMD, Dell, Freescale Semiconductors, PayPal, and Whole Foods.
Famous Destinations
-6th Street (Also known as Pecan Street): Known for various bars, including old fashioned saloons, dive bars, gay bars, etc. Most of these bars host live music.
-Mount Bonnell: The highest point in Austin, TX. Come here for romantic moments and beautiful nature in front of scenic vistas.
-Capitol Building: Taller than the U.S. Capitol.
-Congress Ave.: One of the main streets of the city. Famous for the bat bridge which hosts millions of Mexican Free-Tail Bats. South Congress Ave. (Aka SOCO) is a famous tourist district with unique and odd shops, trailer park eats, and more live music.
Sports
The sports team of the University of Texas at Austin is known as the Texas Longhorns.
Austin is the largest city in the United States without a major-league professional sports team.[31]
Formula One has made an agreement with the city of Austin to host the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix in the city. A new racetrack was built to host the race.[32] The United States Grand Prix began taking place in Austin since 2012.
Austin, Texas Media
Statue of the Goddess of Liberty on the Texas State Capitol grounds, prior to installation atop the rotunda
Second capitol building in Austin
An 1873 illustration of Edwin Waller's layout for Austin
Austin as seen from space, 2020
One of the 15 remaining moonlight towers in Austin
The 2011 Texas drought dried up many of central Texas' waterways. This boat was left to sit in the middle of what is normally a branch of Lake Travis, part of the Colorado River.
Austin covered in snow on February 15, 2021. Photo from ESA.
Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail along Lady Bird Lake
Sculpture Falls along the Barton Creek Greenbelt
Austin's Deep Eddy Pool is the oldest human-made pool in Texas.
References
- ↑ "Government". austintexas.gov. Retrieved August 14, 2024.
- ↑ "2019 U.S. Gazetteer Files". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved August 7, 2020.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Austin, Texas
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 "U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts: Austin city, Texas". Census Bureau QuickFacts. 2024-07-01. Retrieved 2025-05-15.
- ↑ "2020 Population and Housing State Data". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
- ↑ "Total Gross Domestic Product for Austin-Round Rock, TX (MSA)". fred.stlouisfed.org. Archived from the original on January 10, 2024. Retrieved January 3, 2024.
- ↑ "Geographic Identifiers: 2010 Census Summary File 1 (G001): Austin city, Texas". American Factfinder. United States Census Bureau. Archived from the original on February 13, 2020. Retrieved February 8, 2018.
- ↑ "QuickFacts: Austin city, Texas". United States Census Bureau. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
- ↑ Alejandra Matos, Austin Police increase reward for information in bombings case, Houston Chronicle (March 18, 2018).
- ↑ Weber, Paul J. (January 11, 2019). Texas set to remove Confederate plaque from state Capitol. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/path-cleared-for-confederate-plaque-removal-in-texas-capitol/2019/01/11/97afb6f8-15c2-11e9-ab79-30cd4f7926f2_story.html.
- ↑ Lawmaker: Confederate plaque removed from Texas Capitol. January 13, 2019. https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/lawmaker-confederate-plaque-removed-from-texas-capitol/2019/01/13/91712bb2-1786-11e9-b8e6-567190c2fd08_story.html.
- ↑ Flynn, Meagan (September 20, 2017). Speaker Joe Straus Calls for Removal of Confederate Plaque on Capitol Grounds. http://www.houstonpress.com/news/speaker-joe-straus-wants-children-of-the-confederacy-plaque-removed-9806645.
- ↑ Samuels, Alex (September 19, 2017). Texas House Speaker Joe Straus Calls For Removal Of 'Inaccurate' Confederate Plaque. http://keranews.org/post/texas-house-speaker-joe-straus-calls-removal-inaccurate-confederate-plaque. Retrieved June 2, 2018.
- ↑ Silver, Johnathan (July 20, 2018). 40 Texas lawmakers in favor of removing Confederate plaque; Abbott mum. https://www.mystatesman.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/texas-lawmakers-favor-removing-confederate-plaque-abbott-mum/FGBg5O2kZGbPJqfzc5vQNL/amp.html. Retrieved January 4, 2019.
- ↑ A Guide to Confederate Monuments in Austin. August 18, 2017. https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2017-08-18/a-guide-to-confederate-monuments-in-austin/. Retrieved November 24, 2017.
- ↑ Guide to Confederate Monuments in Austin. August 18, 2017. https://www.austinchronicle.com/news/2017-08-18/a-guide-to-confederate-monuments-in-austin/. Retrieved November 10, 2017.
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Weber, Andrew (July 27, 2018). Equity Office proposes renaming 7 Confederate streets – and even the city itself. https://www.austinmonitor.com/stories/2018/07/equity-office-proposes-renaming-7-confederate-streets-and-even-the-city-itself/.
- ↑ "UT student government votes to remove Jefferson Davis statue". KXAN.com. March 26, 2015. Archived from the original on November 8, 2017. Retrieved October 18, 2025.
- ↑ Tom McCarthy, "Drive to call time on Confederate flag sweeps south – 150 years after civil war", The Guardian, June 23, 2015.
- ↑ Associated Press, "'Emancipate UT': Confederate statue defaced at University of Texas", The Guardian, May 9, 2015.
- ↑ "Jefferson Davis Statue to be Relocated to Educational Exhibit at History Center". UT News – The University of Texas at Austin. August 13, 2015.
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 "Sons of Confederate Veterans take UT statue case to Texas high court". Archived from the original on July 3, 2018. Retrieved July 21, 2018.
- ↑ Associated Press, "Texas university removes Confederate president statue from campus", The Guardian, August 30, 2015.
- ↑ Haurwitz, Ralph K.M. (August 17, 2017). UT removing Confederate statues from South Mall. https://www.statesman.com/news/local/removing-confederate-statues-from-south-mall/g4yylLQXmHni95DraX1vGM/. Retrieved August 21, 2017.
- ↑ Weber, Andrew (August 12, 2015). The Long, Controversial History of UT's Confederate Statues. Moody College of Communication at the University of Texas at Austin. https://kut.org/post/long-controversial-history-uts-confederate-statues. Retrieved August 21, 2017.
- ↑ Bromwich, Jonah Engel (August 21, 2017). University of Texas at Austin Removes Confederate Statues in Overnight Operation. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/08/21/us/texas-austin-confederate-statues.html. Retrieved August 25, 2017.
- ↑ Cunningham, Chelsea (December 7, 2018). Former Texas Gov. James Hogg statue to have new home on UT Austin campus. KVUE. https://www.kvue.com/article/news/local/former-texas-gov-james-hogg-statue-to-have-new-home-on-ut-austin-campus/269-622028333.
- ↑ Jechow, Andy (July 2, 2018). IDEA Allan school sheds name after learning of Confederate origin. KXAN. https://www.kxan.com/news/local/austin/idea-allan-school-sheds-name-after-learning-of-confederate-origin/1279743538.[dead link]
- ↑ Noble, Don (May 5, 2014). Review of Brother Sid: A Novel of Sidney Lanier. NPR. http://www.apr.org/post/brother-sid-novel-sidney-lanier#stream/0. Retrieved August 23, 2018.
- ↑ KUT, Claire McInerny (March 26, 2019). "Austin School Board Votes To Change Lanier High School's Name To Juan Navarro High School". kut.org.
- ↑ "Ten largest cities without a major pro sports franchise in North America". Yahoo! Sports. June 10, 2011. Archived from the original on October 22, 2013. Retrieved October 19, 2013.
- ↑ "Formula One returns to the United States". formula1.COM. Formula One Administration Ltd. Retrieved 2010-05-27.
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Notes
- ↑ All elected officials in the city of Austin are officially nonpartisan; party affiliation is for informational purposes only.