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From Lawrence Da Silva on Facebook May 10, 2026

Great aerial view facing south, and overlooking the south shore entertainment venues as seen in 1959. On the left side is the new domed Municipal Auditorium (later renamed for Mayor Lester Palmer). Barton's Springs Rd. is the nearest street on the other side of the Auditorium area and runs left to right.
On the right side is Disch Field, a Texas League baseball field, and next to it is the quonset hut-shaped City Coliseum. Behind them (to the west) is the US Naval Reserve Building.
The Coliseum had been one of the biggest venues until the Palmer Auditorium was constructed in the late 1950's. It held the Travis County Livestock Show and Rodeo, the Shrine Circus and Circus Vargas, not to mention innumerable music performances, and wrestling matches. The new Municipal (Palmer) Auditorium hosted the Austin Symphony and its children's concerts, rock concerts, as well as various boat shows, the Boy Scout Scoutarama, and miscellaneous trade shows. There were also a Christmas shopping market and Junior League charity events. The Palmer Auditorium was eventually torn down but the distinctive half-round disc element was saved as a tribute.
On the far left is the Austin Sportscenter, near the intersection with South 1st Street---it was next to the quonset hut-shaped Skating Palace (the future Armadillo WHQ). When the popular touring show "Louisiana Hayride" came to town they invariably performed at the Sportscenter. At the time, there were a number of future country music stars on the bill, including Elvis Presley and his trio. On the extreme left is South Congress Avenue, the main road leading to and from the south half of the city. The oldest chartered school in Texas, the Texas School for the Deaf, is visible as the cluster of buildings on the west side of Congress, just south of Barton's Springs Road.
The lower right corner shows the rapids on the Colorado River, long a reliable place for crossing the river in wagons or on horseback (in low stages, of course!).