An Austin Tradition
Since our inception in 1977 at the City Coliseum in South Austin, Texas, the City-Wide Garage Sale has been a cherished, woman-owned, family-run event. For nearly five decades, we’ve empowered small businesses and fostered a vibrant community of talented vendors and unforgettable characters. Celebrities like Goldie Hawn, Rue McClanahan, Drew Barrymore, and local icons such as Charlie Sexton, Dale Watson, and Aaron Franklin have added star power to this lively gathering. Join us to explore this unique Austin tradition, where the past and future collide in an exciting treasure hunt. Experience the nostalgia and true Austin vibes!
The City Coliseum was a repurposed B-29 military hangar from World War II. The City of Austin-owned venue hosted the local circus, the rodeo, and legendary names such as Stevie Ray Vaughan, Johnny Cash, The Clash, and the Beastie Boys, among many others.
History
The year is 1977 when the gasoline shortage strikes. In Austin, lines of cars wait at every gas station for a 10 gallon maximum. That's when the idea popped: With gas in such limited supply, how will people be able to continue the great weekend pastime: garage sales? What if all the garage sales were in one location…
And so the City-Wide Garage Sale® was born. Individuals and non-profits were eager for a climate-controlled venue to have their garage and rummage sales, advertising included - rain or shine! Very quickly, antique and collectible dealers saw opportunity. Word spread and soon lines of shoppers waited to get into the building on City-Wide weekends when the sale opened on Saturday morning.
As the years passed, demand from customers for used, unusual, old and hard-to-find goods drove the evolution of City-Wide into a vintage and collectible marketplace. Individuals with regular household goods at bargain prices still participate to maximize their profits. It became clear that to maintain the event’s unique identity as the place for the unusual, the bargain, and the downright weird, there would be no crafts, novelties, or assorted new items allowed at City-Wide.
With time, Austin changed. The old City Coliseum was torn down in 2002 and replaced by the Palmer Events Center. City-Wide Garage Sale® kept its identity as the place to shop for all things vintage and collectible. Each sale attracts an eclectic mix of shoppers: collectors, college students, interior decorators, set designers, wardrobe consultants, families, and of course, the just plain curious. Their curiosity is rewarded with an amazing, ever-changing array of vintage and used treasures.
Over four decades, the name “City-Wide” has become an iconic Austin event. Austin has evolved a great deal over the past 48 years, so we did the same. We updated our name to City-Wide Vintage Sale in 2019.