Summer 2025 Newsletter





Friends Past Matters Header




*June 23, 2025*






"The Friends of the Texas Historical Commission partners with the Texas Historical Commission to preserve and promote the real places and real stories of Texas, including our state historic sites [ [link removed] ]. "




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Every Place Has a Story and Every Person Has a Place in Texas

Donna Carter

"Donna D. Carter, FAIA, serves as Board Chair of Friends of the Texas Historical Commission and is President of Carter Design Associates, an architectural, planning, and restoration firm in Austin."

My CV on the website says a great deal, but it doesn’t hint at why my work is so important to me and why I am passionate about historic preservation in all of its forms, and by extension, why the work of the Friends of the Texas Historical Commission is so meaningful to me.

I am not a native Texan, but I have been here for over 50 years. From the very beginning, I was captivated by the breadth and depth of Texas history and culture. I remember discovering the deliciousness of kolaches in West, Texas. I also remember getting lost in the deep Piney Woods and ending up in the wetlands near Louisiana. Then there was the time I adventured from Brownsville to Del Rio and found myself drifting through the beauty of Big Bend National Park and then on to Presidio. Through all of these journeys, the varying changes in landscape, people, towns, and buildings I discovered inspired me. The kaleidoscope of places and communities served to highlight the vast and complex nature of our state, yet no matter where in Texas I was, I kept hearing one repeated phrase from the people with whom I spoke – “I’m a Texan.”



*READ MORE* [ [link removed] ]


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Growing Our Team

Anjali leaning on window

"Anjali Kaul Zutshi serves as Executive Director of Friends of the Texas Historical Commission and Chief Development Officer for the Texas Historical Commission, leading fundraising efforts in support of the THC's historic preservation mission."

Summer Greetings! As you read this issue of "Past Matters", and especially the letter from our Board Chair, Donna Carter, I hope that our commitment, to ensuring that the stories and histories of all Texans are preserved, comes through clearly. All Texans, generational as well as newly arrived, with their varied stories and perspectives and their Texan-ness, are part of the rich and complex tapestry that is Texas history. And we take our responsibility to preserve this tapestry and share it forward very seriously.

To that end, we are continually building our capacity and strengthening our team to do the work we are committed to doing. It is my pleasure to introduce to you the newest member of the Friends of the Texas Historical Commission’s team – Development Manager Lorelei Gonzales. 

I look forward to working with her to reach out to many of you in the coming weeks and months, to have deeper and detailed conversations about the impact your support is having on our communities and on Texas history. 



*READ MORE* [ [link removed] ]


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Record Registrations for Real Places 2025

The Friends of the Texas Historical Commission (FTHC), in partnership with the Texas Historical Commission (THC), were delighted to present the 9th annual Real Places Conference in Austin last April. The premiere historic preservation conference in Texas, Real Places brings together individuals and organizations from a broad array of backgrounds for three days of energetic networking and learning. We thank our 2025 sponsors for helping to make Real Places a success!

Join us in Austin for Real Places 2026, tentatively scheduled for April 8-10.

conference sponsor logos

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Welcome, Preservation Scholars!
intern group photo

Join us in welcoming the 2025 cohort of Preservation Scholars! The high quality of this year’s applications delighted us, and the decision-making process challenged us in all the best ways. This year, we expanded the program and added one additional internship placement, bringing eight incredible students to the FTHC and THC this summer. We eagerly anticipate all that they will accomplish during their 10-week internships.

*MEET THE SCHOLARS* [ [link removed] ]


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Historic Site Commemorates Culture and Connection

Zaragoza interior [ [link removed] ]

Ignacio Seguín Zaragoza was born near Goliad in the shadow of La Bahía del Espíritu Santo—a quiet village of stone houses and simple "jacales". The year was 1829, and the town had only held that name for a few weeks when Zaragoza made his appearance. It would be several years before it became infamous for the Goliad Campaign and subsequent execution of James W. Fannin’s command.

Today, a replica of one of the stone houses stands as the *Zaragoza Birthplace State Historic Site* [ [link removed] ], a new addition to the Texas Historical Commission’s portfolio. The reproduction was completed in 1974, following archeological excavations in 1969 and 1972, and was based on plans drawn by prolific Texas architect Raiford Stripling.



*READ MORE* [ [link removed] ]


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Upcoming Virtual Events

* Jun 26—From Boom to Bust: How Oil Transformed Historic Texas Communities [ [link removed] ]
* Jul 24—Texas Takes Shape: A History in Maps from the General Land Office [ [link removed] ]
* Aug 14—Make Mine Modernism: John S. Chase and Mid-Century Architecture for Austin's Black Middle Class [ [link removed] ]







*Get More Updates About Texas History!*

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