ALICO Building

The Praetorian Building is a historic 7-story building located at 601 Franklin Avenue in Waco, McLennan County, Texas. Designed by the Dallas architectural firm of C. W. Bulger & Co. in the Chicago school or Modern style of architecture, it was built in 1915 by Hughes O'Rourke Construction to house the Praetorian Insurance Company whose main office, the Praetorian Building in Dallas, had been designed by C. E. Bulger in 1905. Other names the building has borne over the years include the Franklin Tower, Service Mutual Building in 1934, Southwestern Building in 1956 (the year Praetorian sold the building), and Williams Tower from 1989 to 1996. Today, the building houses apartments, retail, and office space.

Jesse Washington was a seventeen-year-old African American farmhand who was lynched in the county seat of Waco, Texas, on May 15, 1916, in what became a well-known example of lynching. Washington was convicted of raping and murdering Lucy Fryer, the wife of his white employer in rural Robinson, Texas. He was chained by his neck and dragged out of the county court by observers. He was then paraded through the street, all while being stabbed and beaten, before being held down and castrated. He was then lynched in front of Waco's city hall. Over 10,000 spectators, including city officials and police, gathered to watch the attack. There was a celebratory atmosphere among whites at the spectacle of the murder, and many children attended during their lunch hour. Members of the mob cut off his fingers, and hung him over a bonfire after saturating him with coal oil. He was repeatedly lowered and raised over the fire for about two hours. After the fire was extinguished, his charred torso was dragged through the town. A professional photographer took pictures as the event unfolded, providing rare imagery of a lynching in progress. The pictures were printed and sold as postcards in Waco. Although the lynching was supported by many Waco residents, it was condemned by newspapers around the United States. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) hired Elisabeth Freeman to investigate; she conducted a detailed probe in Waco, despite the reluctance of many residents to speak about the event. Freeman concluded that white residents were generally supportive of Washington's lynching. She also concluded that Washington killed Fryer. After receiving Freeman's report on the lynching, NAACP co-founder and editor W. E. B. Du Bois published an in-depth report featuring photographs of Washington's charred body in The Crisis, and the NAACP featured his death in their anti-lynching campaign. Historians have noted that Washington's death helped alter the way lynching was viewed. The widespread negative publicity helped curb public support for the practice. In the 1990s and 2000s, some Waco residents lobbied for a monument to Washington's lynching, but this idea failed to garner wide support in the city. On the centennial of the event in May 2016, the mayor of Waco held a formal ceremony to apologize to Washington's descendants and the African American community. A historical marker has been installed to memorialize the lynching.

The Waco Tribune-Herald is an American daily newspaper serving Waco, Texas, and vicinity.

Katy Park was a baseball park located in Waco, Texas, and was used by many minor league baseball teams as well as the Baylor Bears for a short time.

Magnolia Market at the Silos, commonly called Magnolia Market, is a shopping complex that encompasses two city blocks in downtown Waco, Texas. It is marked by two 120’ high silos, built in 1950 as part of the Brazos Valley Cotton Oil Company. The Brazos Valley Cotton Oil Mill Company closed in 1958, and the silos ceased to serve as storage in the 1990s. The grounds opened to the public in October, 2015. The complex is owned by Chip and Joanna Gaines, TV personalities best known for HGTV's Fixer Upper TV series. The Gaineses completely transformed the Waco landmark, which helped to change the city as well as many surrounding areas. The grounds include a 12,000 sq. ft. retail store located in the historic grain barn and office building, a food truck park with picnic tables, a garden store, bakery, and lawn area. Admission to the grounds is free except during special events.In 2016, its first full year of operation, Magnolia Market reported an estimated 1.9 million visitors. Special events are held regularly at the complex, including Spring at the Silos (March), Silobration (October), and Christmas at the Silos. Events include concerts, vendor booths, and other activities. In 2019, it was announced that Magnolia Market is undergoing a $10.4 million expansion. The expansion plans include adding new shops and public spaces to the two-block area anchored by the Silos. Attractions include a wiffle ball field, more shops, and gardens, as well as the relocation of the historic Waco Church to the 4.9-acre site. Magnolia Market Complex already draws an estimated 30,000 visitors per week.

The Washington Avenue Bridge in Waco, Texas was built in 1902 and was then the longest single-span vehicular truss bridge in Texas. It has a 450-foot (140 m) span across the Brazos River. It provided for traffic circulation in addition to that provided by the 1870-built Waco Suspension Bridge one block downriver (east).The bridge cost $93,399 for its construction, not including $1,850 for railings and approach spans. Its cost was split by McLennan County and the City of Waco, which became equal owners.A Black man named Sank Majors was lynched at the bridge in 1905, hung from a crossbeam by a white mob. Another Black man, Jim Lawyer, was attacked for objecting to the lynching. Texas Rangers looked on the violence and did not intervene.The bridge was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.

Alexander James Moore Academy (more commonly referred to as A.J. Moore Academy) was a magnet high school in the Waco ISD district in Waco, TX. A.J. Moore was designed to prepare students for success in post secondary education and in the workplace. Students were prepared to excel academically, physically and socially. Special emphasis was placed on business, engineering, entrepreneurship, technology, and post-secondary education. In February 2012, the Waco Independent School District decided in part, avoiding a $3.4 million budget shortfall, to close and consolidate A. J. Moore Academy with University High School. On June 2, 2012, A.J. Moore Academy gave diplomas to its last graduating class. A. J. Moore Academy existed as a stand-alone school for 14 years.

The Foster Pavilion is a multi-purpose arena on the campus of Baylor University in Waco, Texas. Completed in 2024, the arena hosts the Baylor Bears men's and women's basketball teams. The arena replaced the Ferrell Center for both basketball teams, while the Ferrell Center will be renovated as a home for volleyball and acrobatics and tumbling teams.

The Cotton Palace was an exhibition ground in the area of Clay Avenue, Dutton Avenue and South Sixteenth Street in Waco, Texas, from 1895 to 1930. It was built to highlight cotton-growing activities in the area.

The Texas Ranger Hall of Fame and Museum in Waco, Texas, is the state-designated official historical center of the famed Texas Rangers law enforcement agency. It consists of the Homer Garrison Jr. museum gallery, the Texas Ranger Hall of Fame, the Texas Ranger Research Center and the Headquarters of Texas Rangers Company "F". The City of Waco serves as the appointed trustee on behalf of the Texas Department of Public Safety and the Texas Legislature.

George W. Truett Theological Seminary is a Baptist theological seminary in Waco, Texas. The seminary, named after Southern Baptist preacher George Washington Truett, was founded in 1993 as part of Baylor University and is affiliated with the Baptist General Convention of Texas.

Municipal Stadium, or Waco Municipal Stadium and formerly Waco Stadium, is an athletics stadium located in Waco, Texas at S 15th Street and Dutton Avenue. It was formerly the home field of Baylor University's athletic teams from the time shortly after the stadium was built in 1936 until 1949. For the Bears, the new off-campus facility replaced the smaller Carroll Field as the home football game location, where they had played from 1930 to 1935. Waco Stadium was renamed Municipal Stadium in 1942. Baylor did not play there in 1943 or 1944 due to World War II. Baylor's track teams used the stadium into the 1950s.Today the original grandstands are gone, replaced by a single side seating area, but track and playing field remains.