Texas History Museum in Jefferson, TX is one of more than 15,400 museums in the MuseumsUSA directory. Find an exciting museum to visit where you live or vacation today.

The Texas History Museum was created as a private non-profit museum and research facility by Mr. Burke Barr and Mr. John Rowe, both of Dallas. It houses the extensive collections of historic Texas maps beginning with the 1507 Waldenseemueller map and including representative items from the exploration period, Spanish period, Mexican, Texas Republic period. Maps are exhibited in an interpretive fashion. There are also many railroad maps, town plats, etc.--over 500. The museum also houses exhibition of Texas currency and obsolete banknotes--items range from late Mexican script to 20th century national banknotes. Mr. Barr and Mr. Rowe wished to share their extensive collections with the general public. The Museum is housed in the historic Haywood House Hotel in downtown Jefferson, Texas. There is also an exquisite collection of rare and historic books about Texas including an 16th century Ptolemy atlas, other rare atlases, and items useful in historic and genealogical research.

The project began in 1993; the building was restored and exhibition fabrication was completed in late 1997. The museum opened to the public in 1998. The museum is governed by an independent board.

The museum is affiliated with Texas A&M University-Texarkana and the Cypress Valley Alliance and is involved with those institutions and others in developing a virtual fieldtrip network focusing on Texas museums, historic houses and arboreta. An ongoing project to make the library collection available on-line will be complete in fall 2000.