The list of famous musicians who came to Austin to perform at the Armadillo World Headquarters is as long as the Colorado River. Regulars had a chance to see everyone from Van Morrison and Willie Nelson to Freddy King and Bruce Springsteen.

Eddie Wilson founded the Armadillo in 1970. Now posters, photos and memorabilia from the club's heyday line walls of his restaurant Threadgill's. The Armadillo was a place where people could enjoy Austin's culture and way of life.

"We had a good time and there are those who say we helped put Austin on the map," Wilson said.

From opening night until the club closed in the early 1980s, legendary acts helped build Austin's live music culture. Now, the high-rise office building that replaced the Armadillo includes a special historical marker that was unveiled on Saturday.

"A lot of things sprung from the Armadillo that are still important to Austin today. Music, art and also the spirit of tolerance," former city councilmember Daryl Slusher said.

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	Gone, but not forgotten The city paid tribute to an icon with a historical marker at the original site of Armadillo World Headquarters.

That spirit that helped attract the counterculture to Austin. The Armadillo was a place where people could enjoy everything from honky-tonk music to the ballet and the eclecticism of Austin’s culture and way of life, all with a cold beer while sitting on the large carpeted floor of the former National Guard Armory.

"It was a collection of misfits from all over the country, all over the state of Texas, who had found their own hometown a little bit intolerant of their new long hair. So they came to Austin seeking safety in numbers and a lot of them ended up at the Armadillo,” Wilson said.

Though the club is gone, the spirit remains, now with a permanent tribute to the Armadillo's place in local history. The waist-high plaque remembers a place where “art, music and the spirit of Austin flourished." The marker includes an old picture of the venue, which is now the site of an office building and parking lot.

The Armadillo closed in 1980, after a long battle with financial ruin.

The name for the venue was inspired by the use of armadillos by a local poster artist, and from the building itself. In choosing a mascot, the founders wanted an "armored" animal since the building was an old armory.