Well before 6th was the established party destination, it was a somewhat decaying section of downtown with few mainstream establishments. This was before street people (non-Hippies, that is) were common in Austin so around closing time on East 6th there were some fairly rough characters around. There were lots of places to go however. Most of them had been there "for forever" and even some are still around today. Standouts include:

Who here remembers when topless bathing was commonplace at Barton Springs. Where has the rebellious nature (and tolerance of our population) gone to?