Austin, Texas
On the 27th of December 1839, the Texas Congress officially incorporated a settlement named Waterloo as the new capital of the Republic of Texas. This decision followed a commission's search for a site to replace Houston, which had served as the temporary capital since independence. Mirabeau B. Lamar, then Vice President, recommended the north bank of the Colorado River during a buffalo-hunting expedition between 1837 and 1838. He noted the area's hills, waterways, and pleasant surroundings as ideal for a crossroads connecting trade routes from Santa Fe to Galveston Bay. Edwin Waller surveyed the land and drafted the Waller Plan, dividing the site into a 14-block grid bisected by Congress Avenue. The first auction of 217 out of 306 lots took place on the 1st of August 1839. Within months, the name changed to Austin in honor of Stephen F. Austin, the Father of Texas. By 1840, the population reached 856, but half fled when Congress recessed due to fears of Mexican incursions. Sam Houston, Lamar's political enemy, attempted to move the government back to Houston in 1841, sparking the Archive War where citizens refused to let documents leave unaccompanied. The capital temporarily moved to Washington-on-the-Brazos before returning to Austin in 1845 following Anson Jones' reconvening of Congress. In 1860, 38% of Travis County residents were enslaved people. Black communities like Wheatville, Pleasant Hill, and Clarksville emerged after the Emancipation Proclamation, with Clarksville becoming the oldest surviving freedom town west of the Mississippi River. By 1870, African Americans comprised 36.5% of Austin's population.
The city transformed from an agricultural trading hub into a global technology center known as Silicon Hills starting in the 1960s. Defense electronics contractor Tracor began operations in 1962, followed by IBM opening a facility in 1967 to produce Selectric typewriters. Texas Instruments established itself two years later, and Motorola started semiconductor chip manufacturing in 1974. These early moves laid groundwork for decades of growth that would see thousands of graduates from the University of Texas at Austin fueling the region's tech sectors. The dot-com boom of the late 1990s strongly affected Austin, creating both rapid expansion and subsequent bust cycles. Today, Fortune 500 companies including Dell, Apple, Google, Amazon, Tesla, and Oracle maintain headquarters or regional offices here. Tesla employs over 20,000 people at its Gigafactory Texas assembly plant, with plans to eventually reach 60,000 staff. In 2018, venture capital investments in the metro area totaled $1.33 billion, accounting for more than 60 percent of Texas' total investments. The Greater Austin metropolitan statistical area generated a gross domestic product of $248 billion in 2023. Major employers now include the State Government, University of Texas at Austin, H-E-B grocery chain, City of Austin, Ascension Seton healthcare network, Federal Government, Dell Technologies, Tesla, St. David's Healthcare Partnership, and Amazon. The city also hosts about 85 pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies, ranking as the third emerging life sciences cluster nationally by CBRE Group in 2018. Whole Foods Market, founded in Austin, remains headquartered there alongside other notable businesses like YETI, Rooster Teeth, and Nintendo.
The 2020 census recorded Austin's population at 961,855, making it the thirteenth-most populous city in the United States and fifth-most populous in Texas. The median age stood at 33.0 years, with 19.4% under 18 and 9.5% aged 65 or older. Racial composition has shifted dramatically over decades: non-Hispanic White residents dropped from 73.4% in 1970 to 47.7% in 2022, while Hispanic or Latino populations rose from 14.5% in 1970 to 32.5% in 2022. Asian residents increased from 0.1% in 1970 to 8.4% in 2022, and Black or African American populations fluctuated between 11.8% and 13.3% before settling near 7.9%. A 2014 University of Texas study identified Austin as the only U.S. city experiencing fast growth alongside a net loss of African Americans during that decade. Despite total populations of both Black and non-Hispanic White groups increasing, their percentage shares declined because Asian and Hispanic communities grew faster. In 2005, the non-Hispanic White population fell below 50% for the first time recorded. Household data shows 410,868 households existed with 24.9% having children under 18. About 35.3% were individual households, and 6.1% involved someone living alone aged 65 or older. The median household income reached $83,830 by recent estimates, though about 9.1% of families and 14.4% of the overall population lived below the poverty line. Homelessness affected 2,255 individuals in Travis County as of 2019, split evenly between sheltered and unsheltered counts. The city approved $62.7 million in September 2019 for homelessness programs including housing displacement prevention and crisis mitigation.
Austin sits at the foot of the Balcones Escarpment on the Colorado River, straddling four major ecological regions within a narrow transitional zone between dry deserts and humid southeastern areas. The climate features long, very hot summers averaging highs near 95 degrees Fahrenheit (35°C) and short, mild winters. Average annual rainfall totals around 34 inches distributed fairly evenly throughout the year, though spring and fall remain wettest seasons. Summers frequently reach high-90s with 123 days per year exceeding 90°F, including 29 days reaching 100°F or higher during the 1991-2020 period. The highest recorded temperature was 111°F occurring on both the 5th of September 2000, and the 28th of August 2011. Winters bring occasional cold bursts called Blue Northers, with January averages showing daytime highs near 60°F but overnight lows dropping below freezing 12 times annually. The lowest ever recorded temperature was -2°F on the 31st of January 1949. Roughly every two years ice storms freeze roads over and cripple travel for 24 to 48 hours; one such event in January 2014 caused 278 vehicular collisions. Severe weather threats include tornadoes less frequent than northern areas but capable of striking multiple times yearly. The deadliest storm within city limits occurred the 4th of May 1922, involving twin tornadoes, while the Central Texas tornado outbreak of the 27th of May 1997 remains the most deadly metro-area event. Natural disasters have included extreme drought conditions from October 2010 through September 2011 receiving less than a third of normal precipitation due to La Niña patterns. This drought coupled with summer heat caused wildfires including the Bastrop County Complex Fire. Heavy rainfall following Hurricane Sergio in fall 2018 triggered flash flooding that overwhelmed Highland Lakes, forcing a mandatory boil-water advisory from October 22-29, 2018. Winter Storm Uri dropped prolific snow between February 14-15, 2021, marking the longest period with more than an inch of snow cover since records began.
Austin promotes itself as The Live Music Capital of the World, referencing its many musicians and live music venues alongside the long-running PBS TV concert series Austin City Limits. The city hosts South by Southwest (SXSW), an annual conglomeration of parallel film, interactive media, and music festivals held each spring. Keep Austin Weird serves as an unofficial slogan adopted by some residents to protect small unique local businesses from being overrun by large corporations. This motto originated around 2003 when local community college librarian Red Wassenich and his wife Karen Pavelka created bumper stickers expressing concern over rapid commercialization. The phrase has become an important symbol for those voicing concerns about growth while remaining interpreted variously by different Austinites. Annual events include the three-day Austin City Limits Music Festival held in Zilker Park every year since 2002, plus Eeyore's Birthday Party, Spamarama, Austin Pride Festival & Parade, Texas Craft Brewers Festival, Art City Austin, East Austin Studio Tour, and Carnaval Brasileiro. Sixth Street features annual festivals like the Pecan Street Festival and Halloween night celebrations. Franklin Barbecue has sold out of brisket daily since establishing operations in 2009, credited with maintaining Old Austin cultural sentiments despite rising costs. Businesses such as Thundercloud Subs are thought to preserve classic Austin business culture by not raising prices significantly or becoming overly fancy. Aaron Franklin attributes his restaurant's success partly to community support and the original Old Austin mindset. The city also hosts the O. Henry House Museum which runs the annual O. Henry Pun-Off contest where contestants exhibit wit similar to author William Sydney Porter.
Since the 2000s, many new high-rise towers have been constructed downtown, creating what is now called a skyscraper boom including office, hotel, and residential buildings. The Independent stands 58 stories tall and became the tallest all-residential building west of Chicago when topped out in 2018. The Austonian reaches 56 floors and represents another major addition to the skyline. Downtown residential population surged from an estimated 5,000 in 2005 to 12,000 in 2015 after Mayor Will Wynn set a goal of reaching 25,000 residents by that year. In 2017-2020 alone, 31 high-rise projects were under construction, approved, or planned with sixteen rising above 400 feet including four exceeding 600 feet and eight over 500 feet. Zoning restrictions preserve Capitol View Corridors allowing unobstructed views of the Texas State Capitol from various locations around Austin. Only 15 of the original 31 moonlight towers built in the late 19th century remain standing today, recognized as historic landmarks featured in the 1993 film Dazed and Confused. Transportation infrastructure includes I-35 running north-south east of downtown and Mopac Expressway (Loop 1) to the west. Loop 360 curves through hill country connecting northern and southern portions via the Pennybacker Bridge crossing Lake Austin. SH 130 bypass route opened fully the 1st of November 2012, featuring maximum speed limits up to 85 mph on certain segments making it the highest posted limit in the United States. Public transit includes CapMetro Rail which began operations in 2010 serving downtown plus East Austin, North Central Austin, Northwest Austin, and Leander suburbs. Voters rejected light rail proposals in 2000 and 2014 but approved Project Connect expansion plan by comfortable margin in 2020 proposing two new light rail lines and additional bus rapid transit routes. In November 2023, Austin became largest U.S. city abolishing parking mandates to encourage walking biking public transit use while lowering housing costs.
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Common questions
When was Austin Texas officially incorporated as the capital of the Republic of Texas?
The Texas Congress officially incorporated a settlement named Waterloo as the new capital of the Republic of Texas on the 27th of December 1839. This decision followed a commission's search for a site to replace Houston which had served as the temporary capital since independence.
What is the population and racial composition of Austin Texas according to the 2020 census?
The 2020 census recorded Austin's population at 961,855 making it the thirteenth-most populous city in the United States and fifth-most populous in Texas. Racial composition has shifted dramatically over decades with non-Hispanic White residents dropping from 73.4% in 1970 to 47.7% in 2022 while Hispanic or Latino populations rose from 14.5% in 1970 to 32.5% in 2022.
How does the climate affect weather patterns and natural disasters in Austin Texas?
Austin sits at the foot of the Balcones Escarpment on the Colorado River featuring long very hot summers averaging highs near 95 degrees Fahrenheit and short mild winters. Severe weather threats include tornadoes less frequent than northern areas but capable of striking multiple times yearly and extreme drought conditions that caused wildfires including the Bastrop County Complex Fire.
Why is Austin Texas known as The Live Music Capital of the World?
Austin promotes itself as The Live Music Capital of the World referencing its many musicians and live music venues alongside the long-running PBS TV concert series Austin City Limits. The city hosts South by Southwest an annual conglomeration of parallel film interactive media and music festivals held each spring.
What major high-rise buildings and transportation infrastructure exist in Austin Texas today?
The Independent stands 58 stories tall and became the tallest all-residential building west of Chicago when topped out in 2018 while the Austonian reaches 56 floors representing another major addition to the skyline. Transportation infrastructure includes I-35 running north-south east of downtown and Mopac Expressway Loop 1 to the west with SH 130 bypass route opening fully the 1st of November 2012.