Wednesday, April 26th, 2023 in collection highlights, elected officials, history of Travis County, people. No Comments
Author William Sidney Porter lived in Austin from 1884-1896. Later known by his pseudonym O. Henry, he wrote in 1894, “It is a well-known tradition in Austin and vicinity that there is a buried treasure of great value on the banks of Shoal Creek, about a mile west of the city…” During the 1890s, Austin […]
Monday, August 1st, 2022 in collection highlights, criminal records, District Clerk, exhibits, explore Travis County, history of Travis County. No Comments
The archives is proud to announce a new online exhibit, “Law and Lawlessness in Early Travis County”. This exhibit explores the environment of lawlessness in early Travis County using county criminal court records, photographs and newspaper clippings. The exhibit also looks at the response of law enforcement and the criminal justice system to the criminal […]
Thursday, October 29th, 2020 in history of Travis County. No Comments
This mini-documentary about the history of the Travis County Poor Farm was produced by the Travis County Media Department in collaboration with the Travis County Archives.
Monday, August 31st, 2020 in collection highlights, history of Travis County, Portal to Texas History, research. No Comments
Convict leasing was a system of penal labor in which prisoner labor was leased to private parties. The practice began in Texas and other southern states shortly after the Civil War, when officials realized they had a large population of prisoners to care for and very little money. Leasing the inmates to private individuals appeared to offer […]
Thursday, August 6th, 2020 in collection highlights, history of Travis County, Portal to Texas History, research. No Comments
In Texas, one of the duties of the Commissioners’ Court is the construction and maintenance of county roads and bridges. County roads are public roads that are located outside of city limits but within the county boundaries. City roads are the responsibility of cities, and interstate highways and farm to market (FM) roads are the […]
Wednesday, July 29th, 2020 in collection highlights, explore Travis County, history of Travis County, Portal to Texas History, research. 1 Comment
In a series of posts, we will be highlighting some of Travis County’s lesser known records and the unique information they contain. Travis County Poor Farm Record: 1890-1900 (1 volume). Ledger includes an inventory of property belonging to the Travis County Poor Farm; list of paupers; list of hands hired; list of county convicts sent […]
Monday, April 6th, 2020 in history of Travis County, news, research. No Comments
During the fall of 1918 and the winter of 1919, an epidemic of influenza affected much of the civilized world. An estimated twenty-five million Americans experienced what became known as the Spanish flu; an estimated 550,000 died from the disease. More U.S. soldiers died from the 1918 flu than were killed in battle during the […]
