Austin, TX – The Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC) is offering the public access to more than 57 unique films and 74 audio tapes featuring former U.S. Senator and Governor of Texas Price Daniel, totaling more than 11 hours of video footage and 44 hours of tapes. TSLAC provides in-person access to archival records at its facilities and is constantly adding to its online collections. These newly-digitized audiovisual records are now accessible online in the Texas Digital Archive (TDA) along with millions of other state records documenting the work of Texas government.
“This furthers Price Daniel’s legacy of transparency in government,” said grandson Timothy H. Daniel. “One of his primary initiatives during and after his time in office was developing a new structure for how government records and personal papers of public servants were to be held for posterity and available for anyone who wants to see them. This furthers that, and makes it available to everyone.”
TSLAC staff worked for many months, including during the COVID-19 pandemic, to assess, rehouse, and digitize the films as well as process the video and create descriptive information to make the materials more accessible. The films include campaign spots, family films, televised speeches and endorsements, including from fellow Texan Fess Parker. The films and audio touch on a wide variety of historical topics of continuing interest, including taxation, energy, open government, civil rights and much more. State Archivist Jelain Chubb noted that the recordings provide added research value to other holdings in the State Archives, including papers that document Price Daniel’s campaigns and time in office as Texas Attorney General, U.S. Senator and Governor, which are available for research at TSLAC’s Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center in Liberty.
These records are now preserved in perpetuity and available for research, alongside thousands of hours of other audiovisual materials in TSLAC’s collections. The digitization team continues working to preserve and make accessible more of the State Archives’ materials. Tens of thousands of audiovisual records are already available in the TDA, with more being added regularly. Visit the TDA online at www.tsl.texas.gov/texasdigitalarchive.
Other materials available through the Texas Digital Archive include the papers of other governors, historical manuscript collections, prints and photographs, records of state agencies and other branches of government, state publications, artifacts and more. These records are freely available to the public to search, browse and download—all from the comfort of home. TSLAC remains committed to making Texas history accessible at your fingertips.
The Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center is a component of TSLAC and serves as the official regional historical resource depository for 10 southeast Texas counties. In 1973 former Governor Price and Jean Daniel donated 117 acres of land to TSLAC for the construction of a regional historical resource depository, which opened to the public on May 14, 1977. An additional 10 acres was donated in 1985, creating a 127-acre complex. The Center takes its name from one of the region's most significant historical figures, and Jean Daniel's great-great grandfather, Sam Houston. Its primary mission is to collect, preserve and provide access to historically significant state and local government records and publications of the designated region and secondarily to serve as a library of Texana and genealogical resources.
“The ability to actually see and hear history firsthand is much more impactful than reading or hearing about it secondhand,” Daniel’s grandson said. “This will definitely offer a new perspective with an added level of authenticity. This undertaking by TSLAC furthers his efforts and legacy of making government accessible to all citizens—beyond anything, I’m sure, that he could have ever imagined.”
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The Texas State Library and Archives Commission provides Texans access to the information they need to be informed, productive citizens by preserving the archival record of Texas; enhancing the service capacity of public, academic, and school libraries; assisting public agencies in the maintenance of their records; and meeting the reading needs of Texans with disabilities. For more information, visit www.tsl.texas.gov.
