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Coppinger & McCort Demystifying Evo Devo
About Austin
Austin is such an exciting and interesting city, that we think you should add a couple of days onto your trip to take advantage of all Austin has to offer. Turn your learning experience into a mini-vacation!
Following is information on Austin's history, weather, and things to do. This will just give you a taste of what's available -- there soooo much to do in Austin, we can't possibly list it all!
All of this information has been taken from the Austin Visitor Center website -- for more info, go to http://www.austintexas.org/visitors/
The average temperature in Austin in mid-February is between about 40oF and 65oF. The weather can be somewhat unpredictable in February, so we recommend bringing layers - short sleeves, sweatshirts and a jacket. You might bring one pair of shorts, just in case. The truly hardy (those coming from the frozen north!) might want to bring a swimsuit, but it will probably be too cold for swimming. It's a toss up whether it will be sunny or rainy, so be prepared for both.
Austin is a very exciting city with activities for every taste. It has a huge music and film scene, so the night life is diverse and plentiful, and there are loads of great restaurants in Austin. It also has a vital outdoor life -- you can go to the river and run along the hike and bike trail or go to one of the nature preserves; and, for those that need a doggy fix, there are over 15 dog parks! If you're a history buff, all you have to do is walk around downtown Austin, and you'll be in cultural overload! Here are some of the highlights of this fascinating city:
To learn more about Austin, go to this website: http://www.austintexas.org/visitors/about_austin
When Republic of Texas Vice-President Mirabeau B. Lamar accepted an invitation from his friend Jacob Harrell for a hunting trip to Central Texas, the buffalo were running aplenty around Harrell's trading post alongside the Lower Colorado River. As Lamar surveyed the verdant, rolling landscape, he mused about all great cities following Rome's tradition of being built on seven hills. On that fall day in 1838, Lamar declared, "This should be the seat of future government."
The limestone hills and peridot-colored waters have always and continue to define Austin's legacy and charm. The original settlers, Tonkawa or Tickanwatic tribes who called themselves "those most like humans"-followed deer and buffalo herds to the fertile land. Spanish explorers first arrived in 1709. They returned in 1730 to build a mission at the free-flowing, artesian-fed Barton Springs. Since prehistoric times, the springs have remained the lifeline, and according to most Austinites, the soul of the town. The hills that circle the city and the play of sunlight on those hills inspired short story writer O. Henry, once a resident of Austin, to describe the town as looking as though it wore "a violet crown." That purplish haze still settles over
the city at sunset to paint a spectacular view, particularly from Mt.
Bonnell. At 785 feet, it is one of the highest points within the city
limits. Mystery, romance and tragedy surround the craggy landmark.
Tales of ill-fated lovers leaping to their death from the precipice
inspired the legend that the first time a couple climbs the 99 steps
to the top of Mt. Bonnell, they fall in love. On the second trip, they
get engaged. But, beware, the third climb could prove fatal.
The mid-1800s brought growth to Austin, as the population increased from 629 in 1850 to nearly 3,500 in 1860. A flurry of construction on Capitol Hill resulted in several new landmarks-a new limestone capitol (1853), the Governor's Mansion (1856), and the Old General Land Office (1857). After fire destroyed the old building, a gleaming new State Capitol opened in 1888. Built of distinctive Texas Sunset Red granite quarried in nearby Marble Falls, the $3.7 million building stood, then and now, as the largest of the country's statehouses. In dedicating the capitol on May 16, 1888, Sen. Temple Houston declared, "Here glitters a structure that shall stand as a sentinel of the years." The 1880s signaled a boom period for Austin. In 1886, an impressive skyline began to take shape even prior to the start of construction on the new state capitol when cattle baron Col. Jesse Driskill opened the spectacular Driskill Hotel. Touted as "one of the finest hotels in the whole country," the Victorian structure remains one of the city's most distinctive landmarks. The hotel figures prominently in the careers of both U.S. Presidents with Austin connections. President Lyndon Johnson and Lady Bird shared their first date at the Driskill, and he also awaited results from the 1964 presidential election from the hotel. In 2000, then-Governor George W. Bush set up office at The Driskill while he awaited results from the contested election.
Long regarded as a cultural, political, environmental and educational center of Texas, Austin attracts a diverse mix of writers, musicians, politicians, teachers, environmentalists and average citizens-all looking for a place where the water is clean, people are tolerant, the quality of life ranks higher than average and where pockets of small, unique neighborhoods exist within a larger, urban city. By the late 1800s and into the early part of the 20th century, Austin's rolling hills to the west gave way to several prominent enclaves. Hyde Park, Travis Heights, Fairview Park, Tarrytown, Enfield and Pemberton Heights continue to be the preferred addresses for upscale living. Tucked away along the outskirts of the Old Enfield neighborhood was Clarksville, a community settled in 1871 by Charles Clark. Clark, a freedman, and his family settled on two acres of land that became the nucleus of Austin's African-American community.
Only a few descendants of Clarksville's original residents still live in the neighborhood today. The city's African-American community largely migrated east of downtown, and, from here, greatly influenced one of Austin's most bankable commodities. The early jazz and blues clubs that sprang up in the late 1920s, 30s and 40s birthed Austin's music scene. The late blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan professed to honing his unique talent in East Austin haunts such as Victory Grill.
From
the beginning, Austin's population has been made up of a variety of
immigrant groups. Germans, Swedes and Mexicans were most
Throughout its history, Austin has doubled in population every 20 years. The past two decades were no exception. With 657,000 people living within the city limits, Austin now ranks as the country's 16th largest city. The total metropolitan area includes 1.2 million. Much of the city's most recent growth is a result of a technology boom. In 1967, Tracor Industries set up shop in far northwest Austin. Others soon followed-IBM, Texas Instruments, 3M, Motorola, Advanced Micro Devices, Samsung, Dell. From buffalo chips to computer chips, the little trading post by the river has emerged as the focal point of the Silicon Hills. For the past two decades, Austin has made history as a leader in both technology and creativity. The same entrepreneurial spirit that led 19-year-old Michael Dell to launch a Fortune 500 company from his University of Texas dorm room has also propelled Austin as a music and film center. Austin City Limits, now in its 31st season, continues as the longest-running music show on television. As the location of such feature films as Alamo, Spy Kids, Friday Night Lights and Secondhand Lions, Austin ranks as the top filmmaking city in Texas and second most popular in the country.
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When
he succeeded Sam Houston as president a few months later, Lamar
immediately set out to move the seat of government from Houston to the
settlement that would soon be named Austin for Stephen F. Austin, who
brought the first Anglo colonists to the area in 1821. Work on a new
capitol began in May 1839, and the first 306 lots for the newly
platted city sold on August 1, 1839. 
In
1839, the Congress of the Republic ordered a site set aside for a
"university of the first class." Not until 1882, however, did the
construction begin on that university. From its humble beginnings as a
single building on the original "Forty Acres," the University of Texas
now ranks as one of the largest public universities in the nation.
Some 50,000 students attend classes each year on the sprawling campus.
prominent
in the early years. The Mexican influence became even more prominent
during the mid-1900s as large numbers of immigrants fled unrest during
the Mexican Revolution. That community continued to grow rapidly
during the last part of the 20th century. Hispanics now
make up nearly 35% of Austin's population. For the past two
consecutive years, Hispanic magazine has named Austin the
"number one city in the U.S. for Hispanics to live and work."