About Austin TX
Austin is the capital city of the state of Texas, and as well serves as the county seat of Travis County. It is situated in the central part of the state in the Texas Hill Country region. Austin boasts of many lakes, rivers and even waterways. Some of the most notable of which are the Lady Bird Lake, Colorado River, Barton Springs, Mckinney Falls, Lake Travis, Lake Walter E Long to name but a few. In the early 19th century, pioneer started establishing settlementS in the area along the Colorado River. In 1839, the future site for the city was picked to replace Houston as the capital of the Republic of Texas, and was named Waterloo.
Very shortly afterwards, the name was changed to its present one in honor of Stephen Austin, who is widely deemed to be the father of Texas. After a hitch during the Great Depression, Austin rapidly developed into a key city in the country, and ultimately emerged as a crucial hub for business and technology sectors. As we speak, numerous Fortune 500 firms have headquarters or regional branches in the City of Austin. This includes Amazon.com, eBay, CISCO, Apple, Google, Oracle, IBM, Paypal, Intel to mention but a few. Also, Dell’s global headquarters are based in Round Rock that is a suburb of Austin.
Request a Free Estimate
Deck Builders Austin Pros
Top attractions
The City of Austin has a very vibrant theatre scene, and is home to dozens of resident professional companies. Some of the most prominent performing arts venues are the Zachary Scott Theatre Center, the Salvage Vanguard Theater. the Austin Playhouse, Vortex Repertory Company, Rude Mechanicals’ Off Center, Hyde Park Theater, Scottish Rite Children Theater to mention but a few. Austin is also home to the Long Center for Performing Arts, which was constructed with materials sourced from the old Lester E Palmer Auditorium. The City of Austin as well boasts of Ballet Austin that is the 4th biggest ballet academy in the United States. The Ballet Austin performs ballets from a wide range of choreographers all year round. This Texas capital is also home to Ballet East Dance Company, which is a modern dance ensemble.
On the other hand, notable museums in Austin include the Texas Memorial Museum, the Blanton Museum of Art, the George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center. The Contemporary Austin, the Elisabet Ney Museum and the list goes on and on. The City of Austin as well boasts of the Lyndon B Johnson Presidential Library & Museum. This facility is home to a variety of documents as well as artifacts associated with the Johnson administration. This includes his limousine and a re-created Oval Office. Austin has the Mexic Arte Museum too, which is a Mexican and American art museum. The Ann w Richards Congress Avenue Bridge is also a notable Austin landmark. It is home to the planet’s biggest urban concentration of Mexican free tailed bats. From the month of March, around 1.5 million of these creatures take residence in the structure’s expansion and contraction zones. Every evening, the bats emerge in search of food, an event that draws thousands of both locals and visitors.
Barton Springs Pool
Situated in Zilker Park, the Barton Springs is a natural spring that native Amerindians believed to have spiritual healing powers. It is formed from a subterranean spring, and the 3 acre pool has a consistent temperature of from 68 to 70 degrees. The Barton Springs can be the ideal spot to gain a respite from the oppressive high temperatures the City of Austin is well known for. This site also comes with bathhouses and an educative exhibit on the history and biology of the springs.
Zilker Metropolitan Park
This is a 351 acre Austin park that is situated across the Colorado River from the downtown area of the city. Zilker Metropolitan Park is home to some of this Texas capital’s most trendy attractions. This ranges from museums for the arts to swimming holes. Zilker Metropolitan Park also comes complete with a number of athletic grounds and an open space where visitors can engage in leisurely strolls.
Lyndon B Johnson Presidential Library & Museum
The Lyndon B Johnson Presidential Library & Museum is located close to the University of Texas, and is entirely devoted to preserve the legacy of the 36th President of the US; Lyndon Johnson. It is home to a wide range of artifacts including presidential papers. While also housing strange exhibits such as a Lyndon Johnson robot. The museum, in particular, utilizes a variety of mediums to effectively narrate the story of the former president’s life and his political career.
State Capitol
Situated at the heart of Central Austin, the State Capitol is Texas legislative center. Essentially, it is a pink granite landmark that is noted for being around 14 feet higher than the US Capitol in Washington DC. One visually striking feature of the structure is a 218 foot rotunda. In the 1980s, the State Capitol was subjected to a massive restoration, which included replacing the statue of the Goddess of Liberty that stands at the top of its dome. This restoration work also included installing a 667,000 square feet subterranean extension of the building.
Ann W Richards Congress Avenue Bridge
The City of Austin is renowned for being home to the biggest urban bat colony in the entire continent of North America. About 1.5 million bats have made the Ann W Richards Congress Avenue Bridge their abode. These bats moved into the bridge when a renovation was done to the structure in the early 1980s. This renovation fashioned crevices that the bats took refuge against the threats of predators. In the Spring season, each year, the bats migrate north to the bridge to procreate and take care of their young ones. At the height of the summer season, the bats are well visible as they emerge for their nocturnal forays in search of insects to eat. When autumn approaches, they then migrate to Central Mexico.
Blanton Museum of Art
Located within the campus of the University of Texas, the Blanton Museum of Art is acclaimed for being one of the biggest university fine arts museums in the United States. It houses a remarkable collection of over 17,000 works of art. This varies from Renaissance and Baroque artworks to works by famous artists like Rubens and Poussin. The Blanton Museum of Art also houses an impressive collection of contemporary Latin American works of art. It is also home to the biggest private collection of masterpieces in the country.
Bullock Texas State History Museum
Named in honor of the state of Texas’ 38th lieutenant governor, the Bullock Texas History Museum puts to show a wide variety of exhibits that narrate the state’s rich and eventful history. This includes a number of fascinating artifacts such as the original statue of the Goddess of Liberty that used to sit on top of the State Capitol’s dome. Another intriguing artifact that is to be found in the Bullock Texas History Museum is the space suit Edgar Mitchell used during the Apollo 14 moon mission. This Austin museum as well comes complete with a number of galleries that showcase over 500 artifacts related to the state’s history. Not to mention the biggest IMAX screen in the entire state of Texas along with the 4D Texas Spirit Center, the last of which showcases short movie documentaries. This facility also has an outdoor patio and a big museum store, where visitors get the golden opportunity to purchase fascinating keepsakes of their tour of this museum.