Austin Nostalgia Picture Thread

[Texas007 195]

KUT website has some other cool old pictures too

http://kut.org/post/austins-history-floods

[Steamboat1874 4069]

Night Hawk - 1907 Guadalupe

1935

Youngbloods Fried Chicken - Southwest corner of North Lamar and Barton Springs

2-J's - North Lamar

Villa Capri

La Fiesta 

Where JFK would have been later on that fateful day.....

Green Acres Miniature Golf Course - Burnet Road (east side) just south of 183.

Edited April 16, 2018 by Steamboat1874

[Rollo Tomassi 80]

I played some serious putt-putt at Green Acres back in the day.

[Steamboat1874 4069]

2 hours ago, Rollo Tomassi said:

I played some serious putt-putt at Green Acres back in the day.

Man me too......loved that place.

Still remember every hole.

[Paco 1934]

Man that was a long time ago if Barton Springs intersected North Lamar.

[KaiserSoze 998]

Before the Colorado re-routed itself apparently.

[Chet Steadman 940]

8 hours ago, Steamboat1874 said:

Night Hawk - 1907 Guadalupe

1935

Youngbloods Fried Chicken - Southwest corner of North Lamar and Barton Springs

2-J's - North Lamar

Villa Capri

La Fiesta 

Where JFK would have been later on that fateful day.....

Green Acres Miniature Golf Course - Burnet Road (east side) just south of 183.

Quoted for great pics.  Where were Fiesta and Capri located?

[ftf 2]

 Villa Capri was located where the practice fields are now. Stayed there on the way to Newcombes Tennis Ranch in 1978. 

[Steamboat1874 4069]

10 hours ago, Chet Steadman said:

Quoted for great pics.  Where were Fiesta and Capri located?

The first La Fiesta I remember was on North Loop and Burnet in the end of an old strip center. 2190 North Loop.

That street sign in that photo says 17th Street so I think that might be the original location.

At one time there was the North Loop location, Far West area, Cedar park and Georgetown. Good Tex-Mex.

[TPCJ007 48]

1874 is really bringing back some memories for me. I remember playing putt putt at Green Acres and wasn't there also a Green Acres driving range and a Green Acres liquor store there as well.

I had plenty of good meals at La Fiesta on North Loop and do you remember El Matador that was across Burnet rd. next to Dan's liquor store? 

[PatrickMcHorn 376]

1874 is really bringing back some memories for me. I remember playing putt putt at Green Acres and wasn't there also a Green Acres driving range and a Green Acres liquor store there as well.
I had plenty of good meals at La Fiesta on North Loop and do you remember El Matador that was across Burnet rd. next to Dan's liquor store? 

Dad?

[Wally Pryor 5261]

I never went to the Barn so I didn't see the lady on the swing. I'm guessing a few of you did.

 

Edited April 19, 2018 by Wally Pryor

[futureman 22490]

http://www.pbs.org/opb/historydetectives/video/2365286604/

that’s a link to hour-long PBS special about the servant girl murders in 1884-1885 austin.  I’m sure most are aware of them but if not, it’s believed to be the first known serial killer, before jack the ripper (and some even think it could have been jack the ripper before fleeing to london).  

it’s fairly interesting and has some good austin history as well. 

[TexasToast 728]

 

[Armybrat 40851]

On ‎4‎/‎19‎/‎2018 at 4:25 PM, Wally Pryor said:

I never went to the Barn so I didn't see the lady on the swing. I'm guessing a few of you did.

 

A gf (dated her off & on in HS and at UT) was one of the first girls on that swing over the Barn bar. She graduated from UT, became a social worker, and later married a psychiatrist who worked at the State Hospital.

Edited April 22, 2018 by Armybrat

[GhostOfTomJoad 9337]

Four Points circa '85, during the clearing stages for the 3M complex. Wasn't much there but Nick's Great Pizza, a Jack Brown, and the Tumbleweed restaurant.

[Armybrat 40851]

In the '50s & '60s that was $40/acre goat country.

[gsoda3 3263]

on that map is the road labelled as "mcneil rd" what mcneil drive is today?  or was there supposed to be a different (higher capacity) mcneil rd?  

[GhostOfTomJoad 9337]

It's not the McNeil road that intersects 183. Just another (shorter) stretch that leads to the high school, middle school & mega church back there. Don't believe the two were ever intended to connect.

[gsoda3 3263]

2 minutes ago, GhostOfTomJoad said:

It's not the McNeil road that intersects 183. Just another (shorter) stretch that leads to the high school, middle school & mega church back there. Don't believe the two were ever intended to connect.

yeah, i know not the mcneil rd that goes from mopac to 183.  there's another smaller road off 2222 today called mcneil drive, i'm wondering if the initial plans called for a larger mcneil rd to be there instead of the mcneil drive that's there today.

[RD3 64]

On 3/27/2018 at 8:27 PM, Patricio Swayze said:

Damn. That’s exactly the kind of place I love to find abandoned to take photos of. Then hope it gets restored. Too bad here in Texas we love knocking down old, cool looking buildings. 

Didn't they turn the Austin High School into the ACC campus off West Ave?

[RD3 64]

On 3/29/2018 at 10:03 AM, HOOKEM4 said:

 

This photo is looking north along the I-35 upper/lower split.

That Academy (circled) was I believe the original one in the chain. They were on the east feeder road of I-35 near Hancock behind Fiesta.

I went there in the early/mid 90s and it always smelled like plastic fishing worms.

[Hornius Emeritus 12472]

The shoes left behind by Ruth Moment Armistead before committing suicide by leaping from the UT Tower on September 30, 1971.  This was taken by American Statesman photographer Ike Baruch.

Here's a powerful link to the story behind this photo:

https://christielypka.com/excerpt-from-into-the-abyss/

[DanRydell 799]

On 5/23/2018 at 3:45 PM, RD3 said:

Didn't they turn the Austin High School into the ACC campus off West Ave?

Yup

[Deej 76839]

Didn't they turn the Austin High School into the ACC campus off West Ave?

All while maintaining the same level of education.

[Armybrat 40851]

I got a traffic ticket in 1961 for making a left turn onto West 6th Street at this intersection. (photo is from about that time period)

[Steel Shank 9428]

I always knew you were a bad seed.

[DaysOff 7958]

And stay out the Woolworth's.

[ShaggyBevo RIP 3868]

^^^

Weird to think no one under 40 years old remembers that Woolworth's.

[Not that Bob 739]

Jesus. I rode home on the bus from O. Henry Jr. High, as did Moment Armistead. She lived down the street, so sometimes we would get off the bus at the same time. She was pretty. I wanted to walk with her, but I was to shy and frightened to ask if she want me to join her. Plus, she was a year younger and I would have been mercilessly teased by any of my friends who saw me walking with a younger girl...you know those unwritten rules of 8th-9th grade boys. I heard, much later...remember I'm talking Jr. High and her death was during college years...that she had jumped. I never read the story. Sometimes she and her sisters would come yell at me from the street while I was in my room. Just goofy Jr. High stuff. I was sort of embarrassed that they were watching me, but at the same time sort of thrilled that they thought I was worth the effort. Jesus. 

[Wally Pryor 5261]

On 7/16/2018 at 11:28 AM, Hornius Emeritus said:

The shoes left behind by Ruth Moment Armistead before committing suicide by leaping from the UT Tower on September 30, 1971.  This was taken by American Statesman photographer Ike Baruch.

Here's a powerful link to the story behind this photo:

https://christielypka.com/excerpt-from-into-the-abyss/

Great read.  Thanks for posting. 

[Spaulding Smails 1554]

Quote

Where JFK would have been later on that fateful day....

My wife's grandmother still has the invite and name badge from that fundraiser.  She and my wife's grandfather were already in Austin when news of the assassination started to make the rounds.  I've never asked her if they got their $200 back.  Next time I'm in East Texas, I'll try to get a picture of it.

[South Austin 52521]

16 hours ago, DaysOff said:

And stay out the Woolworth's.

Are you talking about someone in particular, or all black people?

[TXLNGHRN10 341]

On 5/23/2018 at 11:12 AM, GhostOfTomJoad said:

Four Points circa '85, during the clearing stages for the 3M complex. Wasn't much there but Nick's Great Pizza, a Jack Brown, and the Tumbleweed restaurant.

Does anyone have anymore pics of the 4 points area? My family is from there and seems like none of us young'uns have any pics from back then
 

[Godzillatron 292]

on that map is the road labelled as "mcneil rd" what mcneil drive is today?  or was there supposed to be a different (higher capacity) mcneil rd?  

That was definitely supposed to connect to McNeil further north. A 1987 arterial plan showed an extensive network of roads in this area, as opposed to the clusterfuck we have now. I couldn’t find a link to the whole thing, but here’s a crop showing McNeil:

http://www.texasfreeway.com/Austin/historic/freeway_planning_maps/images/austin_planning_map_5-feb-1987_mres.jpg

Also of interest:
- Arterial 8 paralleling 2222. the only remnants of this today is a 6-lane section that goes one where at the top of Jester Estates.
- Steiner Ranch Road (just off this cropped map) was supposed to have a bridge across the lake.

So what happened? You can probably answer that yourself, but to make sure this plan could never be enacted the city bought all the aBCCP land and effectively killed any hope of a rational road network in this part of town.

[gsoda3 3263]

Fascinating. McNeil cutting through to 2222 would alleviate a lot of stress on 360 and 620. Interesting that mopac is Howard lane?

[RomaVicta 29936]

Anybody remember El Mat down on 5th Street near the highway? I think there was a used car lot called Hawk. "Don't walk, see Hawk."

It went away in the 1970s.  Food was okay and the prices were low. Students walking their checks probably put them out of business. There were a lot of exit doors. 

 

 

[Not that Bob 739]

Wasn't El Mat where the crispy taco was invented? At least that's the legend I remember. 

[Armybrat 40851]

El Mat had the best puffy tacos in town from the late '50s until the '70s. It was our go-to place, mainly because it was about a 5 minute rive from our house at Elmhurst & I-35 South - if we made both the frontage road lights at Riverside and 6th street.

[Gardner Barnes 1562]

Your mom had the second best puffy taco in town.

 

[dcbc 14492]

On 4/16/2018 at 9:46 PM, ftf said:

 Villa Capri was located where the practice fields are now. Stayed there on the way to Newcombes Tennis Ranch in 1978. 

Went to UT baseball camp from 83--86.  Stayed at the Villa Capri for a week at a time during those years.  It was getting pretty shady at that point.  But a lot of Austin was pretty shady back then, which I remember fondly. 

Edited April 15, 2021 by dcbc

[Fuck Tim Beck 3834]

2 hours ago, Gardner Barnes said:

Your mom had the second best puffy taco in town.

 

Meh, too much cheese. 

[phdhorn 6224]

Thursday Night Longhorn Night... $1 bottle beer, dancing, tons of hot coeds.
Life stopped being worth living after they closed.

[Deej 76839]

The Nighthawk Frisco Shop closing for good. 

 

https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/news/2018/07/19/end-of-an-erathe-frisco-shop-restaurant-in-north.html

[Not that Bob 739]

Damn it all!! The Night Hawk closing hurts. I didn't go there often, maybe every 2-3 years, but my grandparents took me there. My mother loved The Down South burger. we had many. I introduced my son to the family tradition and his comment on the closing is "The absolute fuck is wrong with this word?!" I'm proud of the boy. 

[Armybrat 40851]

Loved the Top Chopt Rancher "steak" plate at the Nighthawk for $1.95 in the mid 1960s down at the old location (S. Congress & Riverside). The last one I ate was at the Frisco, which had it listed as the Texan.... for $13.95.

Both places were real Austin icons. Sad to see them gone.

[PatrickMcHorn 376]

Loved the Top Chopt Rancher "steak" plate at the Nighthawk for $1.95 in the mid 1960s down at the old location (S. Congress & Riverside). The last one I ate was at the Frisco, which had it listed as the Texan.... for $13.95.
Both places were real Austin icons. Sad to see them gone.

Which corner of Congress and riverside? What is it now? Just curious.

[Armybrat 40851]

35 minutes ago, PatrickMcHorn said:

45 minutes ago, Armybrat said:

Loved the Top Chopt Rancher "steak" plate at the Nighthawk for $1.95 in the mid 1960s down at the old location (S. Congress & Riverside). The last one I ate was at the Frisco, which had it listed as the Texan.... for $13.95.
Both places were real Austin icons. Sad to see them gone.

Which corner of Congress and riverside? What is it now? Just curious.

The NW corner where this building is now:

https://www.google.com/maps/@30.2574085,-97.7468754,3a,75y,330.06h,83.94t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s9pIrAWxHNrhf_dJW42eelA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

That building replaced this original restaurant which burned on that spot sometime in the 1970s, IIRC.

Edited July 20, 2018 by Armybrat

[PatrickMcHorn 376]

Thank you sir.

[ShaggyBevo RIP 3868]

48 minutes ago, Armybrat said:

The NW corner where this building is now:

https://www.google.com/maps/@30.2574085,-97.7468754,3a,75y,330.06h,83.94t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1s9pIrAWxHNrhf_dJW42eelA!2e0!7i16384!8i8192

That building replaced this original restaurant which burned on that spot sometime in the 1970s, IIRC.

After '84 or '85 as we'd go there as HS seniors. It was after the Drag location closed in '80. 

Edited July 20, 2018 by ShaggyBevo RIP