Texas places – Page 8 – The Texas Collection

Research Ready: April 2015

Posted on April 30, 2015

Each month, we post a processing update to notify our readers about the latest collections that have finding aids online and are primed for research. Here are April’s finding aids:

George Sherman and Jeffie Obrea Allen Conner papers, 1866-1980 (#372): Contains correspondence, speeches, notes, and other materials about African American life in Waco, education, home economics, and New Hope Baptist Church.

Duer-Harn family papers. 1832-1928, undated (#26): Diaries, letters, legal and financial papers from the Republic of Texas and American Civil War. Notable documents include several diaries from the 1830s and 1840s written by German immigrant Johann Christian Friedrich Duer.

Gertrude Wallace Davis papers, 1896-1959 (#2166): Includes correspondence, notebooks, newspaper clippings, and other materials about the life of Gertrude Wallace Davis. Several items are from the Catholic-affiliated Academy of the Sacred Heart, in Waco, Texas, where Davis attended school.

German-language diary of Johann Christian Friedrich Duer, 1832

Research Ready: March 2015

Posted on March 31, 2015

Each month, we post a processing update to notify our readers about the latest collections that have finding aids online and are primed for research. Here are March’s finding aids:

Galveston Storm Letter, 1900 — This letter from Elizabeth Thatcher recounts the grim aftermath of the 1900 Galveston storm. One of the worst national disasters in United States history, Thatcher gives an eyewitness account of the aftermath of the storm: thousands of people dead, all communication to the island cut off, and the city placed under martial law. Galveston Storm letters, 1700, box 1, folder 1.

Dorothy Scarborough papers, 1886-1938, undated (#153):

Contains research, teaching, and personal materials of noted Southern folklorist Dorothy Scarborough, who taught English at Baylor University for ten years.

Galveston Storm Letters, 1900 (#1700):

Two letters describing the Galveston Hurricane of 1900, one of the deadliest natural disasters to affect the United States.

Thomas C. Mann papers, 1946-1975, undated (#2461):

Materials include documents relating to Mann’s professional career in the United States State Department as a Foreign Service diplomat.

Preface to Telephone Conversation Memos, 1973 — This document is a preface to Mann’s Memos of Telephone Conversations books and explains why he kept written records of all telephone conversations generated by his office while working for the United States government. Thomas C. Mann papers, 2461, box 16, folder 2.

Texas over Time: River Walk, San Antonio

Posted on March 10, 2015

Texas has changed quite a bit over the years, as is readily seen in our vast photograph and postcard collections. To help bring some of those changes to life, we’ve created a “Texas over Time” series of GIFs that will illustrate the construction and renovations of buildings, changing aerial views, and more. Our collections are especially strong on Waco and Baylor images, but look for some views beyond the Heart of Texas, too.

City leaders were considering closing the downtown portion of the river after the catastrophic floods of 1921, when the San Antonio Conservation Society helped save it by staging a puppet show.
In 1929, architect Robert H. Hughman presented his plan for “The Shops of Romula and Aragon” but after plans were halted during the depression, developers broke ground in 1939, beginning the River Project and what would become known as the River Walk, or the Paseo del Rio.
Flood control gates at the south and north ends of the horseshoe-shaped bend protect the area from high water levels which often follow hard rains. The concrete channel between the two ends of the bend was built as part of the over-all flood prevention program complete in 1929.
The HemisFair of 1968 gave old San Antonio River a new direction as the river was extended into the fairgrounds.
The river was named after St. Anthony de Padua on his feast day, June 13, 1691. In 1718 and 1731, five missions were built along the river, which was the start of what is now the city of San Antonio.

Sources:

Fisher, Lewis F. River Walk: The Epic Story of San Antonio’s River. San Antonio, TX: Maverick Pub., 2007. Print.

Brown, Merrisa. “Wacky San Antonio Facts.” MySA. San Antonio Express-News, n.d. Web. 30 Jan. 2015.

See all of these images on Flickr. GIF and factoids by Haley Rodriguez, student archives assistant.

Research Ready: February 2015

Posted on February 27, 2015

Each month, we post a processing update to notify our readers about the latest collections that have finding aids online and are primed for research. Here are February’s finding aids:

BU records: Baylor Literacy Center, 1946-1988 (#BU/32): Contains the files of Baylor’s literacy center, which helped to teach members of the Waco community how to read. The collection contains brochures, subject files, and student work produced by the staff and students of the Literacy Center.

Tom Padgitt, 1870 — Photograph of Tom Padgitt, owner and head of the Tom Padgitt Company, a noted Waco-based leatherworking company. Forest Edwin and Edna Lee Sedwick Goodman Family photographic collection, 1870-1918, undated (#3944), box 1, folder 3.

Winter family photographic collection, 1880-1920 (#3945): Mostly unidentified photographs from Waco and Central Texas. The photographs provide insight into the style and photographic practices of American society at the turn of the twentieth century.
Jesse Breland and Jessie Brown Johnson papers, 1888-1929 (#440): Includes letters and mathematics notebooks. The letters describe Baylor student life in Waco 1888-1891.
John F. Baugh papers, 1946-1995, (#3339): Draft manuscripts, notes, and research files for Baugh’s book, The Battle for Baptist Integrity.
[Belton] First Christian Church records, circa 1962-1967, undated (#117): Contains research materials and draft manuscripts of the church history book History of the First Christian Church, Belton, Texas, 1856-1966.
Forest Edwin and Edna Lee Sedwick Goodman family photographic collection, 1870-1918, undated (#3944): Includes photographs documenting Goodman family life in Waco, Texas, along with a scrapbook of a trip to Mexico. Forest Edwin Goodman worked for the Tom Padgitt Company in Waco.

Jessie Brown Letter — Jessie Brown frequently wrote to her sister Lizzie while a student at Baylor, 1888-1891. In this letter, she mentions the local fair and a spat with the president’s wife and disciplinarian of Baylor women, Georgia Burleson, over the oft-discussed topic of fashion. Jesse Breland and Jessie Brown Johnson papers, 1888-1929 (#440), box 1, folder 1.

Exploring the Waco Jewish Community with the Texas Jewish Historical Society

Posted on February 11, 2015

By Paul Fisher, Processing Archivist

Texas Jewish Historical Society members exploring display in Texas Collection reading room, 2015 — Texas Jewish Historical Society members exploring display in Texas Collection reading room. The materials on display for society members to view included representative items from over nineteen collections documenting the life and faith experience of Jewish people in Waco.

On January 24, The Texas Collection welcomed the Texas Jewish Historical Society to a special display of materials on Jewish life and faith in Central Texas. Members of the society viewed many different kinds of materials, including:

a letter to a German Jewish family by the German secret police, warning them to leave the country (they later came to Waco, Texas),
an elaborate green velvet scrapbook with photographs from the 1800s of the Goldstein family in Waco,
photographs of Jewish-owned businesses in Waco, such as the Goldstein-Migel and Sanger Brothers department stores,
membership cards and past meeting pamphlets from the Texas Jewish Historical Society, and
photographs of Temple Rodef Sholom and Congregation Agudath Jacob in Waco from the early 1900s.

Photographic scrapbook of the Goldstein Family in Waco, Texas, from the early 1900s — Photographic scrapbook of the Goldstein family in Waco, Texas, from the early 1900s.

All together, The Texas Collection has more than 20 Jewish-related collections available for researchers to explore. Most of these collections are unprocessed, meaning they are not yet described through a finding aid in BARD or housed in modern acid-free boxes and folders. However, two Jewish collections have been processed recently, the De Cordova Family papers 1845-1956 and the Waco Chapter of Hadassah records 1928-2009, and we hope to process the rest of them soon. Stay tuned for more news about our Jewish collections!

Research Ready: January 2015

Posted on January 30, 2015

Each month, we post a processing update to notify our readers about the latest collections that have finding aids online and are primed for research. Here are January’s finding aids:

Elizabeth Borst White papers, 1905-1995, undated (#3910): Contains cookbooks produced by Texas utility companies as a service to their patrons, postcards of various places in Texas, and photographs of rice harvesting and processing machinery. White has also generously given The Texas Collection many historic cookbooks of Texas, which can be found in our online library catalog.

Truett Seminary Faculty Competition Advertisement — During finals, some Truett Seminary faculty participate in a Fight Club Wii boxing competition series–a chance for students to unwind by watching their professors compete! Students help campaign for and cheer on their professors with flyers like this one. BU records: George W. Truett Theological Seminary #BU/298, box 38, folder 10.

BU records: George W. Truett Theological Seminary (#BU/298): Materials about Truett Seminary history, faculty and student life, and academic achievements, including when the seminary was first housed in First Baptist Church, Waco.

Lou Ann Sigler East Waco Community Photograph collection, 1925-1961, undated (#3916): Contains photographs of African American life in Waco, including Paul Quinn College and A.J. Moore High School students. Most of the people in the record group are unidentified.

Texas Carrots Cookbook page — In the mid-twentieth century, the Texas Department of Agriculture began distributing cookbooks to the public in order to support Texas grown products, such as beef and carrots. Elizabeth Borst White papers #3910, Box 7, Folder 3, The Texas Collection, Baylor University.

Texas over Time: Galveston Causeway

Posted on January 26, 2015

Black and white image from Edward C. Blomeyer photographic collection #3886; Series II Texas 1906-1920; Gulf Coast, Box 3, Folder 7. Postcards dated 1940-1954.

There are two causeways connecting Galveston Island to the mainland. Both have been renovated over time with changes consisting of wider lanes and a drawbridge replacement.

The original Galveston Causeway was opened in 1912 and is now restricted to railroad use only. The companies, Gould Lines, Harriman Lines & Santa Fe, originally owned it. This railroad bridge is considered one of the greatest accomplishments of engineering in the United States and was put on the list of the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.

The second causeway debuted in 1939 at an approximately $3,000,000 price tag and is 8,194 feet long. The bridge was replaced and completed in 2005, and it is the only access for northbound and southbound traffic on the Interstate 45.

Sources:

Federal Writers’ Project “279.” Texas: A Guide to the Lone Star State. Place of Publication Not Identified: Scholarly, 1990. N. pag. Print.

“The Galveston Causeway, Galveston, Texas.” Galveston and Texas History Center. Texas State Library and Archives Commission, Nov. 2001. Web.

“Old Galveston Causeway.” BNSF. James Baughn, 23 Apr. 2014. Web. 20 Jan. 2015.

See all of these images on Flickr. GIF and factoids by Haley Rodriguez, archives student assistant

Research Ready: December 2014

Posted on December 23, 2014

Each month, we post a processing update to notify our readers about the latest collections that have finding aids online and are primed for research. Here are December’s finding aids:

Letter from Onnie Clem Jr. to "Julie" Cecile L. Julian Clem — Letter from Onnie Clem Jr. to “Julie” Cecile L. Julian Clem during Onnie’s 1945 public relations tour in New York, Chicago, and Washington, D.C. They would marry seven months later. Onnie Clem Jr. papers #3939, box 1, folder 3.

Grant and Donell Teaff Baylor Football collection, 1948-2006, undated (#3835): Contains correspondence, football programs, newspaper clippings, and audiovisual materials relating to Teaff’s career as head football coach at Baylor University. As usual, the materials described in the finding aid can be seen at The Texas Collection, but many of them also have been digitized as part of the Baylor University Libraries Athletics Archive in collaboration with the Electronic Library. Check out game films, ribbons, and more in the online collection!

John B. Herpin papers, 1851-1910 (#1636): Letters, tax deeds, and receipts about Herpin’s tract of land in Liberty County, Texas.

Onnie Clem Jr. papers, 1944-1948 (#3939): Letters between Marine Corps members Onnie Clem Jr. and “Julie” Cecile L. Julian Clem during World War II. Also included is a transcribed interview with Onnie Clem Jr. about his experience during the Bataan Death March and as a prisoner of war for two and half years.

Tax receipt for land in Liberty County, Texas — Tax receipt from 1850 for John Herpin’s land claims in Liberty County, Texas. A dispute about ownership of this land was still going on in 1910, according to the collection. John B. Herpin papers #1636, box 1, folder 2.

Research Ready: November 2014

Posted on December 1, 2014

Each month, we post a processing update to notify our readers about the latest collections that have finding aids online and are primed for research. Here are November’s finding aids:

John M. Bronaugh papers 1862-1887 (#63): Contains Bronaugh’s records from his time as Confederate surgeon for the 5^th Texas Cavalry during the Civil War.

History Honors exam — How would you answer the questions on this test? This comprehensive history honors exam represents one of various subject exams from 1938-1941. BU records: Honors Program #BU/108 , box 2, folder 10.

BU records: Honors Program, 1935-1941 (#BU/108): Materials from an early attempt to standardize graduation with honors across participating Baylor programs.

[Robinson] First Baptist Church records, 1866-1969 (#1434): Records of the church, including minutes, membership lists, and other administrative materials.

Christopher J.J. Thiry Baylor Sports Cards collection, 1975-1992 (#3933): Collection contains sports cards of popular Baylor football and basketball players.

Foy Valentine papers, 1918-2000 (#2948): Materials documenting the life of Foy Valentine, a leader in various Baptist organizations and Baptist philosophy on ethics.

[Waco] Veterans Administration Medical Center records, 1938, 1945-1982 (#2608): Photographs, newspaper clippings, pamphlets, and other materials about the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Waco, Texas.

Sarah C. Pier Wiley papers, 1838-1868 (#139): Includes letters, photographs, and a journal about life on the Texas home front during the Civil War.

Handwritten poem — It was popular in the mid-1800s to handwrite poems in the personal notebooks of friends and family. Here we see Sarah Pier’s grandmother dedicating a poem to her. What poems would you dedicate to your friends and family? Sarah C. Pier Wiley papers #139, box 1, folder 6.

Research Ready: October 2014

Posted on November 7, 2014

Each month, we post a processing update to notify our readers about the latest collections that have finding aids online and are primed for research. Here are October’s finding aids:

Frank O. Martin Independence papers, circa 1925 (#3927): Contains manuscript drafts and photographs for a newspaper article about Independence, Texas.

Female Building at Baylor University, Independence, Texas, circa 1925 — One of the earliest known photographs of the Baylor campus at Independence after the school moved to Belton and Waco. This structure, with four iconic columns, was built in 1857. Frank O. Martin Independence papers #3927, box 2 OVZ, folder 1.

BU Records: Staff Council, 1984-2008 (#BU/373): Constitutions, by-laws, minutes, and membership rolls about Baylor Staff Council events.

Borden Family collection, 1839-1921 (#78): Includes land tracts, Confederate currency, and family papers.

[Robinson] First Baptist Church records, 1866-1969 (#1434): Contains lists of members, minutes, and other church administrative materials.

Map of San Felipe, Texas, 1876 — This map shows John Borden’s property in San Felipe, Texas. He and his brothers purchased several hundred acres in the Austin County region during this time. Borden Family Collection #724, box 1, folder 1.