ATXplained

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March 30, 2022

Where have Austin’s Indigenous people gone?

By: Matt Largey

We spend a lot of time in Austin talking about how many new people move here. But most of us don’t talk much about the people who came before us — way before us. 

If you’ve ever taken a walk along Shoal Creek or gone to Barton Springs on a hot summer day, you’re doing something that people have done here for thousands of years. Because all of this was actually once — and in some ways still is — Indigenous land.


Episodes

October 17, 2024

Why are people dropping flour in weird patterns around Austin?

Our question asker noticed it happening at Boggy Creek Trail. But the explanation is weirder — and more fun! — than you might think.

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October 3, 2024

Why hasn’t Bob Schneider ever had a Top 40 hit?

We investigate why “Austin treasure” Bob Schneider has seen big success on the local scene, but hasn’t seemed to crack into the world of huge mainstream “success”.

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September 19, 2024

How is Big Stacy Pool naturally heated?

It’s the hot to Barton Springs’ cold. Why is Big Stacy warm year-round?

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September 5, 2024

Were there ever alligators in Zilker Park?

A generation of Austinites’ memories all line up: several alligators right in Zilker Park in the 1980s. Is it some kind of mass delusion or could it be true?

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August 29, 2024

What’s the story behind this insert from a 1975 ZZ Top album?

In 1974, Austin was host to an epic — and epically messy — concert at UT’s Texas Memorial Stadium. This is the story from people who were there.

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August 22, 2024

Why is there a display about Jasper Johns on the side of a Jason’s Deli in San Marcos?

A mysterious poster about a famous artist with no connections to Texas — or Jason’s Deli — leads us on a hunt for who made the thing — and why on Earth they put it there.

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August 8, 2024

There used to be a pet cemetery in Pflugerville. What happened to the animals?

Where the pain stops and the good memories begin.

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July 25, 2024

Why do all the new skyscrapers in Austin look blue?

Let’s take a moment to reflect on the color of Austin’s contemporary skyline.

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