cropped-Augzoo-Icon-1.png

AUGZOO

X-twitter Youtube Instagram Facebook-f
DOWNLOAD APP

Saturday I 10am - 6pm

October 3, 2026

Woolridge Square Park

900 Guadalupe St. - Austin, TX - 78748

A day of history, augmented reality, live music, and community.

Download augzoo App

Augmented Reality Experience and Entertainment

History Surrounds

History Surrounds brings Austin’s past into the present. At Wooldridge Square, history becomes something visitors can see, hear, explore, and experience through augmented reality, oral histories, 3D historical reconstructions, live music, and community storytelling.

Join us for the October 3 launch-day picnic, a full day of music, history, and exploration at Wooldridge Square. Following the launch, Saturday docent-led programming will continue throughout October and November.

And the experience doesn’t end when the docents go home. History Surrounds will continue as an interactive augmented reality experience that visitors can explore on their own, with Molly, our programmable digital docent, playfully helping guide future visitors along the tour’s path through the stories of Wooldridge Square.

Presented by augzoo in collaboration with the Austin History Center, Friends of Wooldridge Square, and participating community partners, History Surrounds connects Austin’s past with the people and places of Austin today.

This project is supported in part by a Heritage Preservation Grant of Austin Arts, Culture, Music and Entertainment.

Augmented Reality

What if you could see Austin’s history right where it happened?
History Surrounds uses augmented reality on iPhone and iPad to bring the stories of Wooldridge Square directly into the landscape around you. As visitors explore the square, they can encounter historical people and places, 3D reconstructions, archival materials, oral histories, video, audio, animation, and interactive stories connected to the communities that shaped this part of Austin.

The experience combines historical research, community knowledge, oral histories, 3D modeling and reconstruction, spatial mapping, animation, and interactive storytelling to create a new way to experience Austin history.

Rather than simply looking at history on a sign or screen, visitors can explore stories in the places where they happened—connecting Austin’s past with the landscape they see today.

Enjoy History Surrounds Through Augmented Reality (AR)

Download AR App

History Surrounds Event loading augmented reality throughout the park, 2026. Photo Screenshot Courtesy: Michael Mares Mendoza

Wooldridge Square History

A Historic Place at the Heart of Austin - Wooldridge Square has been part of Austin's story for generations, serving as a gathering place for civic events, political movements, churches, musicians, and community life. History Surrounds invites visitors to discover the layers of history that remain connected to this historic public space. History Surrounds invites visitors to discover the layers of history that remain connected to this historic public space.

Block 101 Churches

The Churches of Block 101 - The history of Wooldridge Square is deeply connected to the churches and African American communities that once surrounded the park. History Surrounds explores the legacy of Block 101 and the congregations whose stories continue through Sweet Home Missionary Baptist Church, First Baptist Church on Heflin Lane, Gethsemane Lutheran Church, and Metropolitan AME Church. Through oral histories, archival research, 3D reconstructions, and community voices, visitors can discover how these congregations helped shape Austin's history and continue to influence the city today.

Woman Suffrage Movement

The Woman Suffrage Movement at Wooldridge Square - Wooldridge Square was a gathering place for civic and political activity, including Austin's Woman Suffrage Movement. History Surrounds explores the women, organizations, rallies, and public events connected to the movement and the struggle for voting rights in Texas. Through augmented reality and historical storytelling, visitors can encounter this history in the same public space where Austinites gathered to advocate for change.

Jim Franklin

Jim Franklin & His First Armadillo - Wooldridge Square has an unexpected connection to one of Austin's most recognizable cultural symbols: the armadillo. History Surrounds explores how Austin's iconic armadillo identity emerged through the city's music and poster-art culture, including the legendary work of artist Jim Franklin.

Content Citations

Learn more through the augmented reality experience

Explore with augzoo app

Explore with augzoo app

Walk-Through Videos -
Experience History Surrounds—even if you can’t walk the entire park or access AR on your phone.

History Surrounds is designed to be explored throughout Wooldridge Square, but we know that not every visitor will be able to physically walk the entire site or use an iPhone or iPad to access the augmented reality experience.

To make the project more accessible, augzoo will produce guided walk-through videos that bring the experience directly to you. The videos will take viewers through the park and showcase the historical stories, 3D reconstructions, oral histories, archival materials, and interactive AR content they would encounter along the way.

The walk-through videos provide an alternative for visitors with mobility limitations who may not be able to navigate the entire park, as well as Android users and others whose personal devices cannot access the iOS augmented reality experience. By following a video link, visitors can see and explore the same historical content without needing to physically move from site to site or use an iPhone or iPad.

For visitors attending in person, docents will also be available beginning October 3 to help guide guests through the augmented reality experience and introduce the different historical stories throughout Wooldridge Square.

However you experience it, History Surrounds brings Austin’s history to life where it happened.

Venue Information

Wooldridge Square Park
900 Guadalupe Street
Austin, TX 78701
(RAIN OR SHINE)

Saturday, October 3, 2026
10 AM–6 PM
Live Music

Docent-Led Programming: Saturdays throughout October and November
Augmented Reality Experience: Continuing through the end of November

Download augzoo App

Parking

800 Lavaca Premium Parking Garage
(Across from The Austin History Center)

Parking Information - Travis County has generously provided access to the 800 Lavaca Garage in downtown Austin for visitors attending the October 3 History Surrounds event. We are grateful to Travis County for helping make parking more convenient for the community.

800 Lavaca Garage
Austin, Texas
Parking Rates:
1 hour — $4
3 hours — $6
4 hours — $9
9 hours — $12
12 hours — $16

The garage is available to History Surrounds attendees at the rates listed above.

Parking Provided by:

1q5F4DmBM9iSANYTWCbNpi

Thank You to Our Sponsors & Partners

History Surrounds began with a simple idea: Austin’s history belongs to all of us.

Bringing that history to life has taken a community. We are grateful to the sponsors, partners, historians, artists, community organizations, participating congregations, musicians, storytellers, and countless individuals who have contributed their time, knowledge, creativity, resources, and stories to this project.

Together, they have helped us uncover the people, places, voices, and ideas that shaped Austin—from the congregations and community leaders of historic Block 101 to the suffragists who gathered at Wooldridge Square and the artists and musicians who helped give Austin its unmistakable cultural character.

Their contributions are what make History Surrounds more than an augmented reality experience. They make it a living conversation between Austin’s past and its present.

To everyone who has shared a story, opened an archive, offered a photograph, stepped in front of a camera, made music, built something, answered a question, supported the project, or simply believed in the idea:

Thank you for helping us bring Austin’s history to life—and making it something we can see, hear, explore, and experience together.

This Project is Supported in part by a Heritage Preservation Grant of Austin Arts, Culture, Music and Entertainment.

FAQ

History Surrounds is a site-specific augmented reality experience that brings the history of Wooldridge Square to life through historical research, oral histories, archival materials, 3D reconstructions, animation, audio, and interactive storytelling.

The augmented reality experience is designed for iPhone and iPad users through the augzoo app. Video walkthroughs will also be available so that Android users and visitors who cannot physically walk through the park can experience the stories and historical content.

The public launch and picnic takes place Saturday, October 3, 2026, from 10 AM–6 PM at Wooldridge Square Park. Live music will be scheduled throughout the day.

Yes. The augmented reality experience will continue beyond the October 3 launch. In-person docents will guide visitors through the experience on Saturdays during October and November, while the programmable digital docent, Molly, will help guide future visitors through the experience outside scheduled docent hours.

Yes. History Surrounds is free and open to the public. Visitors are welcome to bring a picnic and enjoy the live music and augmented reality experience.

Explore Austin's History

Saturday I 10am - 6pm

October 3, 2026

Woolridge Square Park

900 Guadalupe St. - Austin, TX - 78748

Download the augzoo app and experience History Surrounds at Wooldridge Square.

Explore with augzoo App

Contact

Questions? Email: info@augzoo.com