The Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC) is now accepting applications for its 2025 Research Fellowship in Texas History. The fellowship includes a $2,000 stipend and is awarded for the best research proposal utilizing the collections of the State Archives in Austin or the Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center in Liberty, Texas.
The application must include the purpose of the proposed research, collections of interest, a discussion of how this research will contribute to a greater understanding of Texas history, plans for dissemination and a curriculum vitae. The recipient of the fellowship will be asked to present the results of their research at a TSLAC event. Judges may withhold the award at their discretion.
In Texas, the history of quilts is a long (and comfortable!) one. Settlers who came to the state made quilts for many different reasons: necessity, to commemorate a national event, or just as beautiful artworks. Here at the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC), you might be surprised to learn that we house several historical quilts in our artifacts collection. The description of this collection says, “Many objects in the collection have little or no accompanying information to provide context for when they were made.” Fortunately, quilts always reveal something of themselves and their makers, even without a written record.
Quilt, Isabel L. Clark collection, 1879 or between 1830-1849. Texas State Archives Artifacts collection, ATF0050. [Click image for larger version.]
For example, the first quilt is part of the Isabel L. Clark Collection, though the name of the maker is unknown. It is all hand stitched and is thought to be made some time in the between 1830 and 1879. The quilt’s pattern is “similar to Bride’s Puzzle, Twelve Crowns and / or Wedding March,” which probably means that this quilt was made by a newly engaged or married woman wanting to create something beautiful for her home. According to the record, “Of note is the use of tan fabric in place of the off-white fabric in several places.” This probably means that the maker was not affluent enough to purchase all the fabric she needed for this quilt and used some (or all) scraps to make it.
Close-up, Quilt, Isabel L. Clark collection, 1879 or between 1830-1849. Texas State Archives Artifacts collection, ATF0050. [Click image for larger version.]
Patrons curious about the Texas State Library and Archives Commission’s (TSLAC) genealogy resources and interested in learning how to use them with the assistance of a professional librarian are invited to visit the Reference Reading Room on Second Saturdays at 10:00 a.m. for Hands-on Help Sessions.
TSLAC Reference Librarians will offer a brief overview of a particular collection or tool that family history researchers may find helpful in tracking down ancestors. No registration is needed, and the sessions are free and open to the public. Hands-on Help Sessions on Second Saturdays this fall are as follows:
Sept. 14 10:00 a.m. Vital Statistics at TSLAC Oct. 12 10:00 a.m. Newspaper Resources at TSLAC Nov. 9 10:00 a.m. City Directories at TSLAC
TSLAC’s collections include books, periodicals, documents, photographs, and artifacts related to Texas history, government, natural resources, businesses, culture, people, and more. Themed exhibits showcasing the wide range of materials available at TSLAC are on view in the lobby of the Lorenzo de Zavala State Archives and Library Building on the State Capitol grounds.
Visitors to the Reference Reading Room are also welcome to log on to computers and explore online databases such as Family Search, Ancestry.com, Fold3, and other products that may contain information available only to on-site patrons. The library is open Tuesday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. and the second Saturday of each month from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Call 512-463-5455 or email ref@tsl.texas.gov for assistance. Learn more at www.tsl.texas.gov/arc.
The Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center in Liberty has announced that it will host its second Family History Day of 2024 on Saturday, Oct. 5 from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. This event is free and open to the public.
Steven Kantner, Digital Assets Archivist at the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC), will share tips and tricks for preserving family photos and media. Photos from yesterday or centuries past all present challenges to those hoping to make the images last for future generations. Morning and afternoon sessions will offer instructions on how to properly care for family photographs and ensure the information is not lost to time. Participants will learn about photograph identification, proper storage and handling, safely creating digital images, digital archiving and other activities related to preserving personal collections.
Family History Day Schedule: 10 a.m. – 12 noon Identification and preservation session 12 noon – 1:30 p.m. Lunch break (on your own) 1:30 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. Digitization and digital archiving session
A free preservation kit will be provided to pre-registered participants. Contact SHC via email at samhoustoncenter@tsl.texas.gov or call (936) 336-8821 to register. Seating is limited.
The Sam Houston Center is a component of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission and serves as the official regional historical resource depository for the 10 Southeast Texas counties of Chambers, Hardin, Jasper, Jefferson, Liberty, Newton, Orange, Polk, San Jacinto and Tyler. The Center’s 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.
October is Texas Archives Month and the Texas Historical Records Advisory Board (THRAB) and Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC) are offering up professional development opportunities, preservation assessments, and the annual poster and webpage is now live!
While registrants for the Society of American Archivists (SAA) online workshop, Finance Basics for Archives Managers have been selected, applications are still open for an in-person workshop to be held in Austin in November. TSLAC will host the closed SAA workshop, Grant Proposal Writing on November 8 at the Lorenzo de Zavala building from 8:30a.m. to 4:30p.m. Learn more and apply by October 7 here: https://www.tsl.texas.gov/workshops
For those in the El Paso and Far West Texas region of the state, THRAB is offering free preservation assessments for archival repositories. Applications are open through October 14. Visit the Archival Resources section of THRAB’s site to apply: https://www.tsl.texas.gov/arc/thrab/resources
Lastly, stay tuned for THRAB’s announcement of the 2024 Archival Award recipients!
Please let us know if your archive has activities to promote for Texas Archives Month and we will add the event to the Texas Archives Month page calendar.
Happy Archives Month!
The National Historical Publications & Records Commission (NHPRC) supports THRAB initiatives.
Celebrate Constitution Day with the Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC)! Visit the lobby of TSLAC’s headquarters in the Capitol Complex on Tuesday, Sept. 17 between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. and pick up a free, pocket-sized version of the U.S. Constitution. The Lorenzo de Zavala State Archives and Library Building houses important state government records and also provides access to federal government publications.
Constitution Day offers an opportunity to appreciate democracy and the relevance of an informed citizenry. The commemorative date recognizes the historic occasion when, on Sept. 17, 1787, delegates from the existing twelve states signed the U.S. Constitution, the founding document of U.S. governance. The ceremony took place at Independence Hall in Philadelphia, PA. The pocket-sized version contains the full text of the document—so pick one up while supplies last!
TSLAC will provide free copies of the U.S. Constitution in the Lorenzo de Zavala Archives and Library Building lobby on September 17 from 8:00a.m. to 5:00p.m.
TSLAC is your source for vital information produced by the state and federal government. The state agency’s mission is to ensure citizens have free access to materials that support civic education.
Through the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP), TSLAC patrons may access federal government publications produced by the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) along with a wealth of other materials. Visit the Reference Reading Room from 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, or online at www.tsl.texas.gov/reference, to learn more about these and other collections.
As our archives staff work on an ongoing basis to arrange, preserve, describe, and make available to the public the materials under our care, we spotlight new additions to the website in a regular feature from Out of the Stacks. The column lists new and revised finding aids recently made available online, along with fresh uploads to the Texas Digital Archive, our repository of electronic items. For a comprehensive list of all recently added and updated finding aids visit Archives: Finding Aids (New & Revised)
New Finding Aids
State Records
Texas Department of Agriculture audiovisual materials – nearly all of these materials are part of the Texas Digital Archive The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) promotes production agriculture, consumer protection, economic development, and healthy living. TDA’s Office of Communications provides media information and keeps the public informed of TDA activities and agriculture issues via traditional and social media channels. These 16 mm motion picture films and digital copies of the original audiotape and video recordings document the department’s activities, including many of the agency’s programs and events, public appearances of commissioners Jim Hightower and Rick Perry, and interviews with agricultural producers in Texas, dating 1969-1999 and undated. The majority of the 16 mm motion picture recordings have been digitized and along with the digital copies of the original recordings are part of the Texas Digital Archive.
Christmas meats, Silent film footage of grocery store during holiday season, 1969. Texas Department of Agriculture audiovisual materials. 1994/099-3-2. TSLAC.
Texas Department of Agriculture meeting minutes, agenda, and supporting documentation (replaces description of the portion of these records that had been included in our Texas Department of Agriculture records finding aid, which will be revised for this soon). The Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) promotes production agriculture, consumer protection, economic development, and healthy living. These TDA records, consisting of meeting minutes, agenda, and supporting documentation, 1924-2021, bulk 1960-1997, document the activities of various boards and committees operating under TDA oversight. The records include meeting minutes, agenda, transcripts, reports, and supporting documentation. Major topics include administration of programs that provide loans and grants to agriculture-related businesses, promotion of agricultural diversification in Texas, establishment of environmental rules and regulations, management of seed quality and development, pesticides and pest eradication, herbicides, and ground and surface water.
Texas Historical Commission Historic Sites Division presentations – includes electronic records that are part of the Texas Digital Archive The Texas Historical Commission (THC) protects and preserves the state’s historic resources for the use, education, and enjoyment of present and future generations. THC’s Historic Sites Division is responsible for overseeing the agency’s thirty-six historic properties located throughout the state. Presentations created by the division, 2011-2015, consist of PowerPoint presentation slides and supplemental documentation. They were used to inform the public and conference attendees about the Historic Sites Division’s operations, its historic properties, and Texas history. The presentations cover topics such as the Historic Site Division’s programs at Casa Navarro, preservation and conservation efforts on the state’s historic structures and artifacts, and the lives of Texans during the 19th century.
Texas Historical Commission executive director files The Texas Historical Commission (THC) protects and preserves the state’s historic resources for the use, education, and enjoyment of present and future generations. THC executive director files include correspondence, legislative bills, subject files, reports, memorandums, newsletters, programs, brochures, photographs, meeting agendas and minutes, dating 1953-2009, bulk 1976-1980. Correspondence from Executive Directors Truett Latimer and Curtis Tunnell make up the bulk of these records. Also included are correspondence and other materials regarding the Texas Conservation Fund, the Texas 1986 Sesquicentennial Commission, the State Historic Preservation Officers, and the purchase of the Crockett letter.
Often it can be said that the only true constant in life is change. One form such change often takes is through travel. Prior to the invention of faster forms of transportation such as the airplane or automobile, as well as widespread networking of the railroad, travel was inherently Odyssean in nature, spanning months or even years. These ordeals were at times recorded by those undergoing journeys, allowing modern readers a window into the past.
First wagon load of forage from San Antonio, Texas, undated. William Deming Hornaday photograph collection, 1975/070-2975. TSLAC.
Some traveled seeking new lots in life, claiming plots of land for their families during the Republic era. Others sought to earn their riches, pursuing the allure of splendor during gold rushes. Some marched to the beat of war drums, documenting their travels as part of conflicts such as the Civil War. Each had their own motivation, means of travel, and struggles along the way.
Wagon flipped over on city street, undated. William Deming Hornaday photograph collection, 1975/070-3120. TSLAC.
In a time before a quick call to roadside assistance for help, a broken axle or run-off mule could leave a traveler stranded for days or weeks. In journeys such as these, every day was life or death, surrounded by largely untamed wilderness. One major hurdle that travelers faced was the crossing of rivers; things could go very wrong, very quickly, and many such travelers never made the trip home.
“Crossing the Pecos River on Pontoon Bridge at the Emigrants’ Crossing, Bexar Territory, Texas, about 1869.” Places collection, 1/103-747. TSLAC.
San Jose Mission, view from front, 1893, Second Mission. San Antonio. Owen Wister photograph collection, 1969/072-0019. TSLAC.
Two men posed seated in front of a tent; hills in background, 1893. Owen Wister photograph collection, 1969/072-47. TSLAC.
In 1893, writer Owen Wister traveled through Texas, photographing and journaling the things he saw, such as the photos above. Now digitized as part of the Texas Digital Archive (TDA), the Owen Wister Photograph Collection serves as a monument to Texas as it was in that time.
Preparing For a Remedy, Group of men lassoing a horse in need of treatment, 1893. Owen Wister photograph collection, 1969/072-35. TSLAC.
Wister’s photographs and writings describing his journeys were published as part of the publication, Owen Wister out West: His Journals and Letters, currently on display in the Reference Reading Room.
Indian Law Officer And Others Posed At Portal Of Fort/Settlement In Desert/Southwest, about 1895. Owen Wister photograph collection, 1969/097-11. TSLAC.
The collections at TSLAC hold a wide variety of historical travel diaries. Some of these materials are currently on display in the Reference Reading Room. Some items listed below are also available online and are linked in the catalog. . More information about our location and hours can be found on our “Visit Us” webpage. For more information about access to the titles on display, please contact TSLAC reference services at ref@tsl.texas.gov or call 512-463-5455.
Title
Author
Call Number
Collection
Diary on trip to Texas from Kansas by wagon train
Olivia Holmes
929.2 H737D
Genealogy
From Virginia to Texas, 1835. Diary of Col. Wm. F. Gray, giving details of his journey to Texas and return in 1835-1836 and second journey to Texas in 1837, with pref. by A. C. Gray; printed for the information of his descendants
The diary of Millie Gray, 1832-1840 (nee Mildred Richards Stone, wife of Col. Wm. Fairfax Gray) recording her family life before, during and after Col. Wm. F. Gray’s journey to Texas in 1935; and the Small journal, giving particulars of all that occurred during the family’s voyage to Texas in 1838
Millie Gray
917.64 G795A
Main
Mary Austin Holley; the Texas diary, 1835-1838
Mary Austin Holley
917.64 H724M
Main
Texas Ranger’s diary & scrapbook
Ann Jensen (editor)
917.64 OD2
Main
Owen Wister out west : his journals and letters
Owen Wister
920.7 W768
Main
Hurrah for Texas! The diary of Adolphus Sterne, 1838-1851
Adolphus Sterne
923.2764 ST45
Main
A diary : written by Judge Robert E. Cowan while on his way from his native Virginia to Texas and thence to Missouri in the year 1867
Robert E. Cowan
923.473 C838d
Main
The Gold Rush diary of William P. Huff
William P. Huff
929.2 H872g
Main
Fighting with Ross’ Texas Cavalry Brigade, C.S.A. : the diary of George L. Griscom, adjutant, 9th Texas Cavalry Regiment
Homer L. Kerr
973.73 R733G
Main
A Texas Cavalry officer’s Civil War : the diary and letters of James C. Bates
James C. Bates
973.7464 B318t
Main
One of Cleburne’s Command : the Civil War reminiscences and diary of Capt. Samuel T. Foster, Granbury’s Texas Brigade, CSA
Capt. Samuel T. Foster
973.7464 F817O
Main
Diary of Ephraim Shelby Dodd : member of company D Terry’s Texas Rangers, December 4, 1862–January 1, 1864
“Armstrong and Aldrin Walk on Moon After Dusty Landing,” July 21, 1969, Beaumont Enterprise. Sam Houston Center, TSLAC.
Looking for a free (and air-conditioned) outing this summer? Visit the Texas State Library and Archives (TSLAC) in downtown Austin and explore the current exhibit on display in our lobby. Extra! Extra! Eyes of the World on Texas at the Lorenzo de Zavala State Archives and Library building features seven cases on significant episodes in Texas history that brought national and international attention to our state. Our team curated documents, images, artifacts, and publications related to the JFK assassination, Spindletop and the oil boom, the Galveston storm of 1900, the New London School explosion and other major events that made headlines in the twentieth century.
The quote on the screen in this image of Mission Control Center at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston reads, “I believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to earth…” John F. Kennedy to Congress, May 1961. Texas Tourism Development Agency photographs and audiovisual materials,1991077_114_ 011. TSLAC.
By the time of the Apollo II Mission in 1969, televisions were in most American homes and offered a new medium for the simultaneous sharing of experiences. The selection of the Houston area for the site of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) facility focused on sending astronauts to the moon connected Texas to the most-watched event in television history, the moon landing on July 20, 1969. Texas Governor Preston Smith would later present astronauts Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin with the Medal of Valor. Dies used to create the medals are housed in the State Archives.
Torchbearer Mable McKnight addresses the crowd at the Liberty Relay Event, with Mayor Paul Henry (left) and other Liberty County and Southeast Texas torchbearers behind her. Olympic Torch Relay Collection, Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, TSLAC.
The Olympic Torch Relay begins at a ceremony in the city of Olympia, Greece, the site of the ancient Olympic Games, at the ruins of the temple of the goddess Hera. An actress playing the temple’s high priestess lights the flame using a parabolic mirror that concentrates the sun’s rays. She then passes it to the first torchbearer, and the relay begins, carrying the flame to its final destination, the Olympic stadium in the host city of the Games. When the flame arrives, the final torchbearer lights the Olympic cauldron, which remains lit for the duration of the Games and is extinguished at the closing ceremony.
In 1996, the city of Atlanta, Georgia, hosted the Summer Olympics. The Olympic flame arrived in Los Angeles, California (site of the 1932 and 1984 Summer Games) from Athens, Greece, on April 27. During its journey across the continental United States, the relay passed for the first time through Southeast Texas, on May 22. In Liberty, a ceremony was held on the grounds of the Geraldine D. Humphreys Cultural Center, and the city provided lunch to all the relay participants. Liberty was one of only five cities in Texas where the relay stopped for such an event.
Map of Olympic Torch Relay route through Southeast Texas on May 22, 1996. Olympic Torch Relay Collection, Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, TSLAC.
The Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center’s Olympic Torch Relay Collection documents the Olympic Torch Relay event in Liberty and the relay’s passage through Southeast Texas. The collection includes photographs of the Liberty event and local relay participants, clippings from various Southeast Texas newspapers pertaining to the relay as it passed through the area, event maps, meeting minutes and notes documenting the planning and organizing of the Liberty event by a local committee, posters and other publicity materials, and the torch carried by torchbearer Don Kelly of Beaumont in the Liberty area.
Liberty Relay Event Poster. Olympic Torch Relay Collection, Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, TSLAC.
Event map for the Liberty Relay Event. Arrows show the torch route into and out of the event. Olympic Torch Relay Collection, Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, TSLAC.
At the Liberty ceremony, a small Olympic cauldron was lit by incoming torchbearer Sharon Davis, a message from the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games was read, and the four Liberty County torchbearers (Larry Wadzeck, Mable McKnight, Sharon Davis, and Timothy Daniel) were introduced and spoke to the crowd. Combined bands from Liberty, Barbers Hill, and Huffman-Hargraves high schools provided Olympic-themed music, including “Olympic Fanfare” and “Bugler’s Dream.” The flame resumed its journey when torchbearer Tim Daniel lit his torch from the cauldron and carried it out of the Humphreys Cultural Center and back to its U.S. Highway 90 route. The city’s Liberty Bell replica was rung during the arrival and departure of the flame.
Torchbearer Sharon Davis lights the cauldron at the Liberty Relay Event. Olympic Torch Relay Collection, Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, TSLAC.
Torchbearer Tim Daniel and his escort runner (unidentified). Olympic Torch Relay Collection, Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, TSLAC.
From Liberty the relay passed through the communities of Ames, Raywood, Devers, Nome, China, Beaumont, Vidor, and Orange before continuing into Louisiana.
Many of the torchbearers had been nominated as “community heroes.” Criteria included volunteer work and service as a community leader, role model, or mentor. The Olympic Organizing Committee selected 5,500 community heroes out of 40,000 candidates. Thirty-eight were from Southeast Texas, representing Dayton, Liberty, Devers, Orange, Beaumont, Port Arthur, Port Neches, Bridge City, and Vidor.
Commemorative photo of torchbearer Don Kelly of Beaumont, who ran his leg of the Relay in Liberty. Olympic Torch Relay Collection, Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, TSLAC.Torch carried by Don Kelly during the Olympic Torch Relay in Liberty on May 22, 1996. Made of aluminum reeds and Georgia pecan wood. Wide gold-plated band on lower half is engraved with the host city names and years of all the Olympic Games, commemorating the 100thanniversary of the modern Olympics. Olympic Torch Relay Collection, Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, TSLAC.
The Olympic Torch Relay is a major event for every community through which it passes en route to the Olympics host city, and May 22, 1996, was undoubtedly a memorable and exciting day for the residents of Southeast Texas. As Brendan Harris, director of the relay event for sponsor Coca-Cola, told the Baytown Sun, “These people are the reason we do this. It gives people from these small towns a chance to share in the Olympic experience. And it gives a town like Liberty the chance to be the host city of the Olympics for a day.”
Visitors may view the Olympic Torch Relay Collection at the Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center during business hours, 8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and Saturday 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. The finding aid is on Texas Archival Resources Online (TARO): Olympic Torch Relay Collection.
