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Description

This is a bright whimsical pictorial map of San Antonio, published by Vaughan Company of Round Rock. The map presents a wide array of late 1980s advertisements and tourist attractions in and around San Antonio. Notes around the map paint an interesting picture of what life in San Antonio was like in the 1980s.

Astonishingly little of the map focuses on the downtown area, with only a couple buildings shown. The Tower of the Americas is depicted alongside the Hemisfair Plaza, Convention Center and the Arena, home of the Spurs. A note refers to the Arena as "The House that Iceman Built," referring to the legendary Spurs player George Gervin.

Humorous depictions dot the map, interspersed with advertisements. Caricatures of farmers, out-of-towners, and sometimes not-so politically correct depictions of Mexican inhabitants abound throughout the map. Views extend past Camp Bullis to the nearby mountains, showing a "blue norther" looming.

A small depiction makes a joke at the expense of city planners, suggesting that they are responsible for too many river extensions. While the River Walk is now one of the most beloved parts of San Antonio, this suggests that there were some doubts about river extensions seven years after it was completed.