Setting the Texas Table: “Dishing” on the Artifacts Collection at the Texas State Archives

Posted on December 11, 2018 by ARIS Staff

By Rebecca Romanchuk, Archivist

[Texian Campaigne plates, 1840-1850. ATF0031b, Artifacts collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.]

Some of us are enjoying the cooler weather we’ve been having in Austin lately and the way it makes us feel the holiday season has really arrived. For most, the holidays are made more festive and meaningful by the foods we prepare and share with others: traditional dishes at family dinners, potluck parties with friends and coworkers, cookie exchanges, and volunteering for or contributing to organizations that provide meals to those in need. Food truly connects us all.

At the Texas State Archives, we’re putting the spotlight on the history of Texas agriculture and foodstuffs in our lobby exhibit Setting the Texas Table, on view through May 2019. You’re cordially invited to visit in person to see this diverse and professionally curated exhibit of original archival materials and selections from our library collection, or take a virtual tour through the online version linked in the logo below. Be prepared to have your appetite whetted!

Of course, you can’t set a table without dishes and various other tableware items. The State Archives’ Artifacts collection includes a number of such pieces, many with connections to the family of Texas Governor Elisha Marshall Pease. These are easily searched for in the Texas Digital Archive; go to the Artifacts collection main search page and enter keywords in the “search within” box, or begin filtering using the options on the left sidebar. You can search for soup bowls, saucers, coffee cups and teacups, demitasse and sake cups, coffee pots and pitchers, plates and platters, and even a chafing dish (anyone hungry yet?). Or, note the artifact number (ATF0###) of an item that interests you in the finding aid and use that as your keyword to go directly to digital images and description of that item.

Many of the Pease table items are of two different Victorian-era designs: floral flow blue and what may be pink Sunderland lusterware (described as “orchid pink and white” in the Artifacts description). Both are varieties of transferware pottery made in England and commonly exported to the United States in the 19th century. The designs were produced by inking a copper plate onto which the design had been engraved, pressing paper onto the inked plate, then applying the still-wet inked paper onto the ceramic piece to transfer the design to it. This process was much less expensive than hand-painting. Imagine the dining table at the Governor’s Mansion or at Woodlawn, the Pease family mansion, laid out with a full set of either of these designs. Victorians adored vibrant color!

[Floral flow blue soup bowls, 1850-1900. ATF0232, Artifacts collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.]

[Floral flow blue covered tureen dish, 1890-1900. ATF0227, Artifacts collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.]

[Coffee pot with lid (possibly Sunderland lusterware), 1850-1900. ATF0236, Artifacts collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.]

Take a close look at the transfer pattern on the pink dessert dishes below. This is the Mother’s Grave design, featuring a boy and girl, with an accompanying small child, gazing mournfully at a gravestone in a picturesque churchyard setting. Mourning pieces such as these were commonly used by Victorian households to memorialize a departed family member. These dishes honor the daughter of Governor and First Lady Pease, Carrie Augusta Pease Graham, whose children came to live at Woodlawn to be raised by their grandmother and aunt, after their mother’s death in 1882. Descendants of those children donated the Pease tableware to the State Archives. They said Carrie Graham’s children hoped that all these dishes would be broken so they wouldn’t have to eat from them any longer. It’s easy to empathize with that wish, though we’re lucky to have these objects survive to provide a glimpse into the personal experiences of the Pease/Graham family and the traditions of the time.

[Dessert dishes (possibly Sunderland lusterware), 1850-1900. ATF0241, Artifacts collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.]

You can learn more about one of the Graham children, businessman and prominent Austin citizen R. Niles Graham, and his extended family from his collection of papers and photographs at the State Archives. Several dozen items once belonging to the Graham family are also part of our Artifacts collection.

Enjoy exploring all the charming tableware in the Artifacts collection and setting your own table to welcome others during the holidays.

What’s New (and Revised) at the Texas State Archives?

Posted on October 24, 2018 by ARIS Staff

By Rebecca Romanchuk, Archivist

The Zavala Building as seen from San Jacinto Street. Now easily accessible by scooter.

If you drive, cycle, scooter, ride the bus, or walk past the Lorenzo de Zavala State Archives and Library Building often enough, you might have noticed that this large, pink granite edifice stays the same size year after year, nestled in its spot next door to the Capitol. Next time you go by, think again. The Texas State Archives located within constantly grows and evolves, and the archivists at the State Archives continually receive historically valuable materials—primarily records from state agencies. We already provide online descriptions about our state and local records and our manuscript and photograph collections: Check out the finding aids we contribute to Texas Archival Resources Online (TARO) and view or download digitized and born-digital materials on our own Texas Digital Archive (TDA). But what if you want to know what’s been recently inventoried and described at the State Archives?

The answer: Go to Archives: Finding Aids (New & Revised) to browse a list of all archival materials we’ve created a new finding aid for or that have been updated in the last 90 days. This list is pulled from our online public access catalog, and each item has a can’t-miss-it red link that goes directly to the TARO finding aid. The blue title link takes you to the full item information and catalog record, both of which also feature the TARO finding aid link. And if any of the materials are available in the Texas Digital Archive, a link for that will be there, as it is in the TARO finding aid (we do our best to make sure you really can’t miss these links!). We also maintain a list of anything new and updated in the TDA, if your focus is on the digital world.

Say you already knew that the State Archives has Texas Supreme Court records from the earliest days of the court in the 1840s through the 20^th century. That’s true, but we’ve recently revised our description of these records to include cases through 2004. And you might be excited to learn that we’ve begun digitizing the earliest cases, which are becoming available here on the Texas Digital Archive, along with Supreme Court indexes and registers. The image below is an example of an early court document now available online and is the first Texas Supreme Court case that concerns a murder.

So keep checking back to keep up with the latest additions to the Texas State Archives!

M is for Murder: The first Texas Supreme Court M case file that concerns a murder is a charge made against a man named Pleasant I. Slaughter in 1848. M-275, M case files, Case files, Texas Supreme Court records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission. (Click the image for zoom features offered in the TDA.)

Electronic Records Day and the TDA

Posted on October 10, 2018 by ARIS Staff

Archival repositories must preserve electronic records along with materials in physical formats. The Texas State Library and Archives Commission established the Texas Digital Archive (TDA) to handle the enormous amount of electronic files contained in the papers of the former governor of Texas, Rick Perry. The TDA manages, preserves, and facilitates access to an increasing number of “born digital” electronic records accessioned with the archival collections transferred by state agencies.

The TDA also provides an access point to items that have been converted to electronic form through digitization. Researchers will find photographs, film, and recordings from state agencies and the Texas government available online. Some wonderful examples of this reformatting are the The Texas State Department of Public Highways and Public Transportation (now the Texas Department of Transportation) films their tourism division created to promote the use of roads and highways. The TDA also includes materials from historical collections like the Mabel H. Brooks photographs digitized from scrapbooks.

Capitol in the snow, about 1920. 1932/005-1, Mabel H. Brooks photograph collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Learn more about the TSLAC materials in the TDA and how to search for records by taking on this scavenger hunt on “Texas Governors and the Capitol” we created for the occasion. Happy Electronic Records Day!

The Texas State Library and Archives division for State and Local Records Management (SLRM) has compiled a list of Electronic Records Day activities, events, and sites on their blog, The Texas Record.

Throwback Thursday: The Lorenzo de Zavala Building, Home of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission

Posted on March 15, 2018 by ARIS Staff

By Steven Kantner, Digital Asset Coordinator

Austin neighborhoods around the Texas State Capitol changed tremendously since the 1950s as homes and businesses made way for various state office buildings and parking garages. Here are some before-and-after views of the areas surrounding TSLAC’s Lorenzo De Zavala building. These 1950s photographs were found in the Department of Public Safety Photograph collection, an ongoing digitization project at TSLAC.

View of the Lorenzo de Zavala Building from Brazos Street

View from the Corner of 13th Street and Brazos Street

View from the Corner of 13th Street and San Jacinto

View from San Jacinto Street

View from San Jacinto Street and 14th Street

View from San Jacinto and 12th Streets

View from San Jacinto and 14th Streets, Looking South

View from 13th and San Jacinto Streets

These and other photographs from the Department of Public Safety Photograph collection can be seen at: https://tsl.access.preservica.com/tda/texas-state-agencies/dps/photographs/

Archival Animals

Posted on January 19, 2018 by ARIS Staff

By Caroline Jones, Reference Archivist

Enjoy watching cat videos? Follow any cute pugs on Instagram? It feels like every day we see friends posting selfies with their pets or videos of their pets, and even creating social media accounts for their pets. It is clear we love our animal friends, and based on some finds in our archival collections, it appears that we have always loved them. Here are a few highlights from our collections that are cute, funny, and simply adorable images of some pets in the archives:

Before they ruled the internet, cats stole our hearts in these family albums:

Robert Jasper Hunnicutt, Elizabeth H. Stroud (center), and sitting on a porch holding kittens. Citation: 1968/029-75, J.R. Hunnicutt collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Doris Ruth Hunnicutt, crouching holding a cat. Citation: 1968/029-340, J.R. Hunnicutt collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Mary Lowry with cat, Black Bess. Citation: 1946/1-38, Reynolds Lowry – Thomas F. McKinney Collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission

Man seated on porch in rocking chair with cat. Citation: 1995.112-60, Clyde and Thelma See glass plate negatives collection. Sam Houston Regional Library and Research Center, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.]

Man’s best friend has always been like a member of the family:

Unidentified young child with bulldog. Citation: 73.2222.122, Samuel Bell Maxey photograph collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Woman posing with dog. Citation: 1964/306-1675, Photographs, Graham (R. Niles) collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Dog sleeping on porch. Citation: 1964/306-1676, Photographs, Graham (R. Niles) collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

A couple of children with a couple of dogs. Citation: 1976/031-10, William Deming Hornaday photograph collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

A little girl and a dog. Citation: 1976/031-16, William Deming Hornaday photograph collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Child with dog. Citation: 2011/348-20.95, Miscellaneous photographs, Photographs, Richard Bachman collection. Archives and Information Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

3 puppies in front of the J.T. Young Home

Three puppies in front of the J.T. Young Home. Citation: 1970/101-156, Fannie Ratchford photograph collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Couple with small dog. Citation: 2001078_005_70_080_023ac, Fields, Farms, and Landscapes, Texas Department of Agriculture photograph collection. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Even these unlikely animal friends have gotten into the spirit:

Governor O’Daniel and Cuero turkey. Citation: 1976/008-593, Photographic and film media, Texas Department of Public Safety records. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Cowboy with parrot. Citation: 1991077_704_084ac, Attractions, Activities, and Events, Audiovisual material, Texas Tourist Development Agency. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Couple with peacock outside Mission San Jose. Citation: 1991077_105_041ac, Forts, Parks, and Historic Sites, Audiovisual material, Texas Tourist Development Agency. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission

Our photograph collections include original photographs, born digital images, and digitized versions of original photographs. Many of the images included in this post are digitized and accessible through the Texas Digital Archives, the Texas State Archives Flickr, and our online exhibits page. For more information on accessing images currently unavailable through the web, please contact the Reference Desk by phone or email at 512-463-5455 or ref@tsl.texas.gov.

As a bonus, here are some more recent images of a familiar face with some unusual guests at the Texas Capitol!

Governor Perry with penguin. Citation: Penguin2, Photographs, Texas Governor Rick Perry Press Office media files. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.]

Governor Perry with snake. Citation: Snake, Photographs, Texas Governor Rick Perry Press Office media files. Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

Monday Mystery – Terry’s Texas Rangers

Posted on November 27, 2017 by ARIS Staff

We’re back with another Monday Mystery post. All of the images from this feature are available on the Texas Digital Archive (TDA), and we welcome folks to browse through all of the images available on this site. We’re looking to our community of patrons, which includes academic researchers, genealogists, photography historians, and Texas enthusiasts, to help us identify some of our photographic treasures.

This Monday Mystery is aided by the research of Dr. David Gracy II, former State Archivist here at the Texas State Library and Archives Commission. Dr. Gracy has helped staff identify and confirm the identities of many of the veterans in this image as a part of his research on George W. Littlefield. Archives staff are grateful for his perseverance and meticulous citations.

Terry’s Texas Rangers reunion panorama photograph, 1908.

Terry’s Texas Rangers reunion panorama. 1961/053-1, Archives and Information Services Division, Texas State Library and Archives Commission.

View or download this photograph on the TDA at: tsl.access.preservica.com/uncategorized/digitalFile_479a53ee-f6d4-4ee2-804f-c3b721407cfc/

Question: Can you help further identify some of the veterans in this image? Review the list of men already identified, get more information about this panorama, and read a brief history of the Terry’s Texas Rangers at the online finding aid: http://www.lib.utexas.edu/taro/tslac/50140/tsl-50140.html.

And, as always, if you find an image on the TDA that you’d like to submit for a future Monday Mystery post please email archinfo@tsl.texas.gov and include “Monday Mystery” in the subject line.

Metadata: The Description Is Out There

Posted on August 16, 2017 by ARIS Staff

By Brian Thomas, Electronic Records Archivist

Metadata is a confusing word that is very often stated but is either not defined for users or ill-defined. The meaning of the term isn’t common knowledge, and references to the importance and popular understanding of what metadata is usually lies with references to the Edward Snowden public release of classified NSA documents. This comparison is great, if you know who Edward Snowden is and paid close attention to the details of the 2013 scandal involved. For the rest of us, it is important for libraries and archives to explain what metadata is and why it is so important.

Metadata is such a big (yet straightforward) concept that an explanation of what it is usually results in conversations that sound like philosophy. Put simply, metadata is descriptive information about stuff. For better or worse, the stuff is what it is. The stuff could be events, things, people, etc. Metadata provides information about what that stuff is. This is incredibly useful for people (and computers) that need to know what that stuff is but cannot see or experience it. For example, if a person is unable to see colors properly, how would they know what color a blue box from an online retailer is? If the person is unable to see anything, how would they know about the logo on said blue box? Someone would need to describe it to them. That description is metadata about the box.

Metadata in libraries is most often seen in the library catalog, which gives details about books so users can know whether a book is the right book for them and where to find the book. Metadata in archives is most often seen in the finding aid, which gives details about what records exist in the collections. All of this is very powerful information, and is one of the currencies of the information age we live in.

The most powerful part of metadata as it exists today lies with metadata standards. Using metadata standards, computers are able to manipulate information to enhance accessibility of the content you want to see. For example, it enables functions like filters and facets to fine-tune a search. The most common example of a filtered search is shopping for something online, and using options provided by the seller to narrow the search results. An example of filtered searching at the Texas State Library and Archives Commission is in the Texas Digital Archive (TDA). Using the Texas Digital Archive to complete a simple search for a picture of someone with the last name Smith might yield 3,499 results. Knowing that the photograph was taken by the Department of Public Safety, and using the filters available, the search results suddenly could drop to 68 results. There are a great number of metadata standards in the various information professions. Dublin Core is a common standard that many other metadata standards incorporate in their core requirements. The Library of Congress provides a good list of current metadata standards for libraries and archives.

A black and white photo with the descriptive information about the photograph circled.

To illustrate the importance of good metadata: In the Stargate universe, lack of metadata about a galaxy far, far away led to contact with the Ori and two more seasons of good v. evil conflict (arguably the worst or best seasons of the show). Lack of metadata about the Romulans in Star Trek enhanced the tensions between the Romulan Empire and the Federation. In Star Wars the midi-chlorians…well, you get my meaning.

Having good metadata enhances our understanding of the things around us, leading to better management and discovery mechanisms. The stuff is out there, metadata helps us find and work with it.

Monday Mystery – June 2017

Posted on June 19, 2017 by ARIS Staff

We’re back with another Monday Mystery post. All of the images from this feature are available on the Texas Digital Archive (TDA) and we welcome folks to browse through all of the images available on this site. We’re looking to our community of patrons, which includes academic researchers, genealogists, photography historians, and Texas enthusiasts, to help us identify some of our photo treasures.

Portiate of a couple, man standing and woman sitting in front of a backdrop

Image: 1995.112-58

Description: Portrait of couple, man standing and woman sitting in front of backdrop, about 1905 to 1920

TDA link: https://tsl.access.preservica.com/file/sdb%3AdigitalFile%7Cd200bac6-7685-4b26-81f8-9c91f6634889/

Collection: Clyde and Thelma See glass plate negatives collection

Question: Can you identify this dashing couple? We’re interested in any information about the pair and if they are from the Batson and Saratoga, Texas area. Or at the very least, admire their serious sense of style.

And as always, if you find an image on the TDA that you’d like to submit for a future Monday Mystery post, please email mailto:archinfo@tsl.texas.govand include “Monday Mystery” in the subject line.

Monday Mystery – May 2017

Posted on May 22, 2017 by ARIS Staff

black and white image of woman and boy sitting in a cart pulled by goats.

Image: 1995.112.11

Description: “All Aboard,” woman and boy in cart pulled by goats, about 1908

TDA link: https://tsl.access.preservica.com/file/sdb%3AdigitalFile%7Cbffc5faf-26a8-4957-9068-ff67a42b3e2e/

Collection: Clyde and Thelma See glass plate negatives collection

Question: This is one of the few images in the See collection with an identified photographer – Fletcher Photo Company. We’re interested in any additional information about this photographer. Was his studio in a nearby town in Texas? Was he a traveling photographer of the day? And can we credit him with creating some of the other images in this unique glass plate negative collection?

Monday Mystery – April 2017

Posted on April 17, 2017 by ARIS Staff

The Monday Mystery posts continues the success of our posts with the Traces of Texas Facebook page on the new Out of the Stacks. We’ll be posting one image every month from our Prints and Photographs Collection in hopes of answering a new photo mystery. All of the images will be available on the Texas Digital Archive (TDA) and we welcome folks to browse through all of the images available on this site. We’re looking to our community of patrons, which includes academic researchers, genealogists, photography historians, and Texas enthusiasts, to help us identify some of our photo treasures.

Black and white photograph of a group of people standing in front of a two story building.

Image: 1997.108-18

Description: “The Round Up,” Batson, Texas, about 1890-1910

TDA link: https://tsl.access.preservica.com/file/sdb%3AdigitalFile%7C1e486043-df23-4c03-80f5-c044a5221519/

Collection: L.J. Whitmeyer glass plate negatives collection

Question: We’re curious to know more about Batson, Texas and the Crosby House that is so prominently featured in the “Round Up” photo. What type of event would have drawn so many folks to gather for this image – was there a special event or just a normal market day in town? Or was the photograph itself the spectacle needed to gather such a crowd.

If you find an image on the TDA that you’d like to submit for a future Monday Mystery post please email archinfo@tsl.texas.gov and include “Monday Mystery” in the Subject line.

Out of the Stacks

A blog from the Archives and Information Services Division at TSLAC

Tag Archives: Texas Digital Archive