Blog Posts About THC's Historic Sites

By Rachel Smith, Educator, Confederate Reunion Grounds

On April 29–30, the Friends of the Confederate Reunion Grounds will host its 23rd annual Civil War Living History and Reenactment at Confederate Reunion Grounds State Historic Site. The event has become a popular yearly tradition for local residents and history buffs from far and wide.

The presentation of mock battles or...

By Megan Maxwell and Barbara Judkins, Starr Family Home

Since the mid-1800s, cotton has been a major cornerstone in the southern economy. By the 1860s, southern plantations produced two-thirds of the world’s cotton supply. Crucial to the industry were the cotton brokers, or factors as they were often called. They provided a link between the plantations and the textile mills located in...

By Brooke Bonorden, Mission Dolores State Historic Site Educator

Stephen F. Austin will be forever remembered in history as the “Father of Texas” for his role in founding the Republic of Texas. Over 100 years before Austin ushered Anglo immigrants into Texas, however, a “father” in a different sense of the word led another group of settlers into the area—Father Antonio Margil...

By Brooke Bonorden, Mission Dolores State Historic Site Educator

You’ve probably heard of the 12 Days of Christmas, but what about the 9 nights of Las Posadas? Translated as “the inns,” Las Posadas is a Hispanic Catholic Christmas tradition that emerged in Mexico over 400 years ago to celebrate the hospitality shown to Joseph and Mary by an innkeeper in Bethlehem. Each year from...