Thursday, March 5, 2026

Join us in the Exhibit Hall for networking and shopping! Light snacks and a cash bar will be available

This panel examines the roles of women whose influence transformed Texas education, civic life, and social justice. Dr. Erika Arredondo-Haskins’ paper, “Like Mother, Like Daughter: Exploring the Lives and Educational Legacies of the Yturri-Edmunds Women in Early Texas History,” traces the contributions of Vicenta Yturri Edmunds and her daughter Ernestine E. Edmunds—descendants of one of

Personal stories offer a vital lens through which to interpret the past, transforming historical research from documentation into lived experience. This session brings together two presentations that illustrate the enduring power of memoir and memory in shaping public understanding of history. Kenneth Taylor, of Holocaust Museum Houston, highlights the scholarly and educational value of survivor

Session description coming soon. Session Chair: Brandon Seale, A New History of Old Texas

Robert S. Weddle (1921–2015) earned his reputation as the “Dean of Spanish Colonial Historians” through a lifetime of groundbreaking research and writing on Spanish Texas and the wider Gulf of Mexico world. His meticulous archival work, innovative use of cartographic and maritime sources, and narrative skill transformed understanding of early exploration and colonization from Florida

Water has shaped Texas’s history, economy, and communities since the state’s founding, and today it remains one of the most critical issues facing its future. This session, Water & Water Policy in Texas: Past, Present, and Future, brings together experts to discuss how Texas’s natural water systems and management strategies are adapting to growing population

Chaired by Lily Norman of the Spindletop Boomtown Museum, this session brings together scholars and museum professionals to explore the origins, preservation, and impact of Texas’s oil heritage—from its explosive beginnings to its lasting cultural and economic significance. Hope Meredith’s presentation, “Spindletop: 125 Years of Oil,” revisits the 1901 gusher that transformed a quiet Beaumont

Washington County was home to one of Texas’s largest enslaved populations before emancipation, and in the years following the Civil War, freed people established nearly twenty freedom colonies across the county. These settlements became vital centers of community life, anchored by churches, schools, and cemeteries. This panel examines the evolving research into Washington County’s freedom

Session Chair: Kenneth Howell, Blinn College Thank you, texashistory.com, for sponsoring this session!

Session Chair: Ana Carolina Castillo Crimm, Ph.D.

Following a chronological approach. This session examines the roles three Texans played in key events of the Second World War. Beginning with Kelly Francis-Love and “Harlon Block: A South Texan Immortalized” looks at how Block, a former high school football player from Weslaco, participated in the Battle of Iwo Jima and secured his role in history through one of

Texas and the United States are navigating a time of intense social and economic change. The so-called culture wars, surging population, mounting demands on natural resources and electricity, and sharp divisions over immigration—both documented and undocumented—create a challenging landscape for textbook writers. Adding to the mix are questions about the role of artificial intelligence, the

Presentation I: The German Texas Frontier in 1853: Ferdinand Lindheimer Accounts for the Present and Projects a Future Daniel J. Gelo and Christopher Wickham After earning renown as the “Father of Texas Botany,” Ferdinand Lindheimer turned to editing the Neu-Braunfelser Zeitung (1852–1872). This presentation analyzes the paper’s first year (Nov. 1852–Nov. 1853), showing how Lindheimer’s