Friday, April 1st, 2016 in events, genealogy, people. No Comments
The Travis County Archives will be featured on an episode of “Who Do You Think You Are?” this weekend. Comedian Aisha Tyler, co-host of “The Talk,” visits the Archives and learns about an ancestor who, as a politician, struggled to keep his illegitimate son a secret. “Who Do You Think You Are?” airs at 8:00 […]
Wednesday, January 20th, 2016 in Travis County Folk Art Museum. No Comments
Two new folk art exhibits are now on display in the Hall of Government at 700 Lavaca Street. They feature works from the collection of Ed Jordan, a long-time collector in the Austin area: burnished clay cats decorated in Pre-Columbian designs, from Tonalá, in the Jalisco state of Mexico; and hand-crafted houses by self-taught Guatemalan artist Don Juan […]
Tuesday, June 30th, 2015 in collection highlights, collections, news. 2 Comments
The Travis County Archives is pleased to announce a partnership between Travis County and the Austin Friends of Folk Art, to store AFFA’s collection of artifacts, photographs, materials and objects at the Travis County Archives. We look forward to making these items available to the public through exhibits and displays throughout county buildings. Burnished pot from […]
Monday, March 2nd, 2015 in collection highlights. No Comments
From the 1980s until the 2000s, Travis County Media Services, a division of Travis County Records Management and Communication Resources, photographed a variety of subjects, including the work and activities of Travis County elected officials and employees, county parks and natural areas, and local elections. The Travis County Archives recently added photographs, negatives and slides from […]
Wednesday, February 11th, 2015 in Uncategorized. No Comments
The Travis County seal was designed by County Treasurer Johnny Crow and adopted in 1975. A document called “The Legend of the Official Travis County Flag and Seal” details the history of the seal: An act of the 64th Legislature of the State of Texas in 1975 amending article 2344, enabled the counties of Texas […]
Friday, January 9th, 2015 in collection highlights, Travis County History Day. No Comments
The Archives recently uncovered 3 partial reports from Travis County Extension agents to the Commissioners Court, dating from the 1950s. These items would have been great additions to Travis County History Day 2014, the theme of which was 100 Years of Extension Services in Travis County. Click the links to view the reports, which include photographs of […]
Wednesday, December 3rd, 2014 in research. No Comments
In 2008, District Clerk Amalia Rodriguez-Mendoza launched an important project to identify District Court case files of historical significance and to preserve them in their original form for future use and reference. With the assistance of an archivist, and in collaboration with several notable judges, lawyers, and the District Attorney, case files dating from as early as […]
Friday, November 7th, 2014 in events, Travis County History Day. No Comments
Many thanks to everyone who came out and celebrated our 7th annual History Day and 100 years of Extension Services in Travis County! A big thank you also goes out to everyone who helped make History Day such a successful event: our committee; special speaker Dr. Doug Steele, Director of the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension […]
Friday, September 5th, 2014 in Travis County History Day. No Comments
Tuesday, July 29th, 2014 in Uncategorized. 3 Comments
One of Travis County’s largest floods occurred in 1935. On June 15, 1935, Travis County and surrounding areas were hit with 22 inches of rain in the span of three hours. The heavy rains flooded large parts of Austin, and the Colorado River crested at 50 feet. Without an effective flood-management system on the Colorado, […]