Step inside the Lorenzo de Zavala State Archives and Library Building, an imposing granite structure next to the Texas State Capitol, and you’re in the lobby gallery. With just seven display cases, it may seem compact. But what these cases hold is immense: close to 200 years’ worth of Texas history in a new exhibit, Texas America250.
Some items are obviously priceless, like the original drawing of the Republic of Texas flag and seal. Others seem trivial, yet they represent something greater. Take for instance the Lucas Oil Well button from Jan. 10, 1901. It commemorates the day Spindletop successfully gushed crude oil for the first time and, in the process, launched a new energy industry that changed the way we live.
Lorenzo de Zavala State Archives and Library Building
1201 Brazos St., Austin. 512-463-5437; tsl.texas.gov/visit
“To this day, it remains a destination for tourists,” says Susan Floyd, communications officer for the Texas State Library and Archives Commission, the agency presenting the exhibit.
America celebrates its 250th birthday this year, and like other states across the country, Texas has events planned to mark the occasion. One is this exhibit in Austin, on display through July 31, that showcases historic, and, in a few cases, rarely seen documents and artifacts from the state archives. Individually, the items have their own stories to tell; together, they show the wide-ranging influence Texas has had on the nation.
Featuring a rotating batch of approximately 65 key historic documents, artifacts, maps, photographs, film and audio clips, and other “Texas treasures” from the state archives, the exhibit was curated by archivists from the agency, one of five constituting the Texas America250 Commission created by the Texas Legislature. It is divided into seven topics: music and film, space exploration, cowboys and rodeos, the oil and gas industry, politics, nature, and historical documents. Each category represents an area where Texans have made iconic and significant contributions.
Items are dated between the 1839 and 2012 and range from vinyl albums by Tejano and Western swing artists to images of the Apollo 11 astronauts. The oldest items include the original 1845 annexation vote by the state’s then-20 counties and the original drawing of the Republic of Texas flag and seal designed by Peter Krag, approved by Gov. Mirabeau Lamar, Texas House Speaker John Hansford, and Texas Senate President David Burnet on Jan. 25, 1839.
Starting Feb. 1, the original 1876 Texas Constitution, one of the most rarely displayed items in the archives, will be added to the exhibit. “This is a really special opportunity to get to see the Constitution if you’re in or around Austin,” Floyd says. For security and preservation purposes, it will be in the Reference Reading Room next to the lobby gallery.
Along with protecting and preserving the state archives, the commission is charged with supporting libraries around the state. That responsibility is what led to the lobby exhibit, an expanded version of a traveling exhibit produced by the agency and distributed to libraries and other institutions throughout the state. “The traveling exhibit was the jumping off point,” Floyd says. “We developed that a year ago, and it is now in almost every county at this point.”
While the traveling exhibit focuses mainly on historic documents and records, the expanded version includes contemporary memorabilia, like a South by Southwest brochure from 1987, the 16th Tejano Music Awards Special Collector’s Edition VHS tape from 1996, and hardbound copies of books by Texas authors. There are also video and audio components, including Kay L. Gale singing “When the Bluebonnets Begin to Grow” which can be accessed by scanning a QR code.
Each item is emblematic of Texas, says Assistant State Librarian Tim Gleisner, who helped plan the exhibit. He cites an old spur in the cowboy and rodeo section as an example.
“That’s something that you might think about when you think about Texas,” he says. “I’ve been to parts of the state where I’ve gone into the mall, and people walk in with their spurs on. It’s not something that’s gone away.”
Regardless of how anyone in America feels about Texas, there’s no disputing the significant impact the state has had on U.S. history.
“Texas is a guiding force for the rest of the country,” Gleisner says. “There’s so much that comes out of here that takes the lead, whether it’s in culture or politics or other spheres.”
Perhaps the biggest takeaway from Texas America250 is that both state and country have changed in ways that the founding fathers could never have foreseen.
