National Library Week, April 6-12, 2025, is a celebration highlighting the valuable role libraries, librarians, and library workers play in transforming lives and strengthening our communities. The first National Library Week was observed in 1958 with the theme "Wake Up and Read!" The 2025 celebration marks the 67th anniversary of the first event. 

From young families stopping in for play and storytimes, to students sketching out their next creative project in a makerspace, to author programs, to seniors seeking tech help and everyone in between, libraries of all kinds help us connect the dots from one part of our journey to the next.  Whatever draws you in, the library has something for everyone. Celebrate National Library Week, April 6 - 12, 2025.



We encourage you to visit your local library, to volunteer, to read a book and to consider a gift to the Texas Library and Archives Foundation. Your contribution to the Texas Library and Archives Foundation’s funding is the only way the Texas State Library and Archives Commission can receive the supplemental financial support it needs to make a lasting impact.  Gifts are used for programing, scholarships, research grants, conservation and staff and volunteer support.  We thank you for your support.



Welcome 

2025 Family Place 

Libraries™ Cohort

The Texas State Library and Archives Commission (TSLAC) is pleased to announce the 2025 Family Place Libraries™ Project Grant Recipients.

Burnet County Library System

El Paso Public Library

Irving Public Library

Laredo Public Library

McAllen Public Library

Navasota Public Library

Lubbock Public Library

Schertz Public Library

Sergeant Fernando de la Rosa Memorial Library

Sherman Public Library

TSLAC initiated this project in 2015 to help public libraries address early learning with a goal of ensuring that all children enter school ready and able to learn. The purpose is to create a welcoming, family-centered environment that empowers caregivers of young children as they become their child’s first teachers. Read more.



Browse Our Lone Star Menu

Do you know the official dish of Texas? What about the official state snack?

We present answers to these questions and more in an appetizing new exhibit for 2025. Lone Star Menu: Tastes of Texas is now open in the lobby of the Lorenzo de Zavala State Archives and Library Building in downtown Austin and is free and open to the public.

Lone Star Menu highlights official, historic and iconic flavors of Texas through selections from the State Archives’ extensive collections that illustrate the important role Texas government plays in supporting and promoting homegrown producers and businesses.

Join the Texas Center for the Book on Monday, March 10 from 2:00 to 3:00 p.m. (central) for #TXBookChat LIVE with Gary Vliet, author of Texas on This Day: 500 Years of History. A conversation with TCFB Coordinator Michele Chan Santos will be followed by an audience Q&A session and book signing opportunity.

RSVP online here.

TSLAC will host the

Society of American Archivists two-day course, “Arrangement and Description: Fundamentals,” April 24-25.

A requirement for the SAA Arrangement and Description Certificate program, the fundamentals course introduces the basic principles, concepts and tools that archivists use to establish both physical and intellectual control over archival records. The in-person, two-day course will run from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at TSLAC’s headquarters in downtown Austin. 

To register and see further details, visit the SAA course website.

The Texas Reads Grant program funds public library programs to promote reading and literacy within local communities. Visit www.tsl.texas.gov/ldn/grants/programs to learn more any apply by March 7 for FY 2026 funding.

Everything Old is NEW Again!

Microfilm reel 01, Image 00164, General Correspondence, Colonial and National Government, Nacogdoches records, Nacogdoches archives from the Texas Digital Archive.

The State Archives preserves and documents the heritage and culture of Texas by identifying, collecting and making available for research the permanently valuable official records of Texas government, as well as other significant historical resources. Finding aids are written guides to archival records, including descriptive information and a folder inventory, and help researchers in the use of holdings that have been prepared for research.

Researchers are invited to visit the State Archives during public service hours: 9:00 a.m. – 4:45 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, and 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. on the second Saturday of each month. Appointments to use archival materials are encouraged but not required. For more information, see www.tsl.texas.gov/arc/visit. TSLAC provides access to online finding aids online at www.tsl.texas.gov/arc.

A comprehensive list of all recently added and updated finding aids can be found in TSLAC’s online catalog at https://bit.ly/TSLACnewcollections. Contact archives reference staff at 512-463-5455 or archinfo@tsl.texas.gov to learn more about finding aids. 

Be a Weekend Wordster

Visit TSLAC on Second Saturday of the Month.

TSLAC's public service areas—the Texas State Archives, the Reference and Information Center, and our Lobby Exhibit space, located at 1201 Brazos in Austin—are open from 9:00 a.m to 4:00 p.m. the second Saturday of each month. This month, that’s Saturday, March 8—come check us out!