Buildings Worth Fighting For
Our living catalog of significant modernist architecture in Central Texas — documented, advocated for, and celebrated.
The Building Showcase is Mid Tex Mod's living catalog of significant modernist architecture in Central Texas. Each featured building has been documented with photographs, architectural descriptions, construction history, and an assessment of its current condition and threat level.
Nominate a building. Anyone can nominate a mid-century modern building for the showcase. If you know of a structure built between 1940 and 1975 that you believe deserves documentation and recognition, submit a nomination through our contact form. Include the building's address, approximate date of construction, current use, and any information you have about its architect or history.
LBJ Presidential Library
1971Gordon Bunshaft / SOM · Austin
The monumental travertine-clad library houses the archives of President Lyndon B. Johnson, with a soaring interior atrium showcasing four floors of red archival boxes.
University Lutheran Center
c. 1960sUnknown · Austin
A modest mid-century church near the UT campus, blending native limestone with clean modernist lines.
Tower of the Americas
1968O'Neil Ford · San Antonio
Built for HemisFair '68, this 750-foot observation tower is the defining landmark of San Antonio's modern heritage.
Circular Courthouse
c. 1960sUnknown · Central Texas
A dramatic circular civic building with soaring concrete columns and full-height curtain wall glass — a bold expression of democratic modernism.
Zilker Park Pavilion
c. 1960sUnknown · Austin
A distinctive lakeside pavilion with a hyperbolic paraboloid canopy, set against the Austin skyline along Lady Bird Lake.
El Montan Motor Hotel
c. 1960sUnknown · San Antonio
A classic roadside motor hotel with a dramatic cantilevered porte-cochere and iconic neon signage — a vanishing symbol of mid-century highway culture in South Texas.
Mid-Century A-Frame Church
c. 1960sUnknown · San Antonio
A striking A-frame sanctuary with rhythmic vertical windows and blonde brick, flanked by a modernist bell tower — a hallmark of postwar Texas church architecture.
Stained Glass Sanctuary
c. 1960sUnknown · Central Texas
Rhythmic brick piers frame vivid stained glass panels that cast rainbow light across the sanctuary interior — mid-century sacred architecture at its most expressive.
Vintage Hotel & Pool
c. 1960sUnknown · Central Texas
A high-rise hotel with elegant arched balconies and a lush poolside setting, capturing the glamour of mid-century Texas hospitality.
Streamline Modern Home
c. 1950sUnknown · Austin
A two-story streamline modern home with curved roofline, horizontal banding, and porthole windows — a rare residential example of early modernist influence in Central Texas.
Church of the Arch
c. 1960sUnknown · Central Texas
A striking white church with a dramatic freestanding arch, geometric stained glass lancets, and decorative sculptural details blending tradition with mid-century form.
Civic Convention Building
c. 1960sUnknown · Central Texas
A large-scale civic building with a bold angular roof form and copper-colored metal cladding, reflecting the ambitious public architecture of the mid-century era.
Frequently Asked Questions
Every Building Documented Is a Building Defended
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