Mission Statement

The Austin History Center Association is a 501©(3) nonprofit membership organization dedicated to the support of the Austin History Center, the local history archives of the Austin Public Library, and its work to collect, preserve, and make available to the public materials that document the rich and diverse history of Austin and Travis County. Founded in 1980, the Association supports the Center by:

• Preserving the architecturally and historically significant building that houses the collection. Built in 1933 as Austin’s central public library, the graceful Italian Renaissance Revival building’s existence was threatened when the library relocated. The Association was formed to ensure the building’s preservation and to refurbish it as the new home of the Austin History Center, now a nationally recognized archival facility. The Center boasts state-of-the-art archival storage facilities, a photographic laboratory, and landscape restoration through our efforts.

• Supporting efforts for expansion of facilities. Since the 1983 renovation and reopening of the building as the Austin History Center, the collection has outgrown the building’s capacity. To allow for continued collection, preservation, and display of local history materials, the Association is working with the City of Austin to plan for the Center’s expansion into the adjacent central library building once a new downtown central library is built. The Association supports plans for expanded archival processing and storage space, exhibit space, a multimedia auditorium, meeting rooms, a Waterloo Press shop, and parking for the Center.

• Partnering with local organizations and institutions to expand the Center’s archives of historic materials. We sponsor special projects such as documentary projects in the local African American and Mexican American communities to ensure the Center’s opportunity to preserve the full range of our heritage.

• Underwriting special purchases and encouraging private donations of materials. In addition to providing major installations such as the photographic laboratory, we support the work of the Center with modern archival management tools not funded through the City of Austin’s budget. We also encourage donations of manuscripts, local business archives, neighborhood association records, and family papers.

• Supporting continuing education opportunities for the Center’s staff, enabling them to stay up-to-date in the fields of archival management and document preservation.

• Presenting an annual preservation award, a lecture series, and special events. To encourage local history preservation and honor leaders in that endeavor, we present the Katherine Drake History Preservation Award annually. We also host the Audray Bateman Randle Lecture Series, presenting lectures on topics of Austin’s history, past and present. Additional programming includes the “Behind These Walls…Our Community’s Collective Memory” tours of the Austin History Center, receptions for exhibit openings, preservation workshops, and special events.

• Publishing books, maps, prints, and cards about Austin’s history through Waterloo Press. Watch for the upcoming Austin Past and Present, a comprehensive interactive digital history of Austin.

• Serving as advocates for the Center to draw attention to the importance of public funding of its mission and to encourage donations of materials from local citizens, businesses, organizations, and institutions.