Updated 08/07/2012 08:56 AM
Local Wonders: Preserving Austin's history one artifact at a time
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Did you know Deep Eddy Pool once had a flying trapeze and diving horse act? Did you know Austin was also home to America’s first serial killer?
You can learn all about Austin’s colorful history at the Austin History Center. The collection started in the mid 1950s.
“We like to think of ourselves at the stewards for the collective memory of our community,” Curator of Archives and Manuscripts Susan Rittereiser said. “The Austin History Center collects, preserves and disseminates historical information for Austin and Travis County.”
Rittereiser said what’s neat about the collection is that most of it has been donated. There are millions of items stored in the center, including all crime scene photos from the Whitman mass murder and Whitman’s personal effects (i.e. his library card). The center even has a Kinky Friedman action figure.
The center is so full they’re expecting to expand into Faulk Central Library in 2016. It’s free to the public. To learn more about it click here.