Austin then and now, in photos

On Wednesday, Curbed.com published a package of stories about Austin, focused on some of the challenges that rapid and ongoing growth have presented. The tile of the package is “Austin faces the future.”

A longtime Austinite (or a denizen of “Old Austin,” which now exists mostly in people’s minds) might add “reluctantly.” For, while we are for the most part a city that is energized by the transition from sleepy college town to, perhaps, a Major City, we are also a town that loves its nostalgia—the memories and mythologies of every Austinite’s past, even if they moved here only a month ago. It’s one of our charms, really.

In the spirit of that civic hobby, we present the following illustrations that we hope capture the ways some of the places here have—or haven’t—changed. It’s by necessity an ongoing, never-to-be-completed project, so please let us know in the comments below or email cindy@curbed.com and tell us what else you’d like to see get the photo-slider treatment.