AUSTIN, Texas —
The Texas Historical Commission (THC) has designated the Witte Museum in San Antonio as an official curatorial facility for the State of Texas. The announcement was made October 29 at the THC’s quarterly commission meeting in Austin.
The THC’s Curatorial Facilities Certification Program ensures that facilities managing state archeological collections meet current museum standards pertinent to the care and management of collections. The ultimate goal of the program is the preservation of Texas' irreplaceable archeological collections for future research or display in museums.
The State of Texas owns millions of artifacts as a result of decades of archeological investigations on non-federal public lands. These state-owned pieces of our heritage, such as prehistoric stone tools and pottery, reside in held-in-trust collections in certified museums. The Witte Museum joins 16 other certified curatorial facilities across the state, including the University of Texas at San Antonio’s Center for Archaeological Research.
The Witte Museum applied to become certified as a curatorial facility in September 2020. The application was followed up by a self-evaluation report and inspection visits by THC staff. Already an accredited museum by the American Alliance of Museums, the Witte Museum demonstrated through the strength of its policies, procedures, and facilities that it is a world-class museum and ideal for certification as a curatorial facility.
Founded in 1923, the Witte Museum aims to inspire people to shape the future of Texas through relevant and transformative experiences in nature, science, and culture. The San Antonio campus includes several structures, including the Robert J. and Helen C. Kleberg South Texas History Center, three historic houses, and two log cabins built on the property in the 1940s to demonstrate how Texans lived in the 19th century.
The Witte Museum also operates the White Shaman Preserve near Seminole Canyon State Park and Historic Site in Comstock. The museum had been involved in archeological research and expeditions in the canyons of the Lower Pecos area since the 1930s and now houses more than 20,000 artifacts from these ancient sites. Some can be seen in exhibits in the Kittie West Nelson Ferguson People of the Pecos Gallery and at the White Shaman Preserve.
For more information on the THC’s Curatorial Facility Certification Program, contact State Archeologist and Archeology Division Director Brad Jones at 512-463-6096 or brad.jones@thc.texas.gov or visit www.thc.texas.gov/cfcp.
To learn more about the Witte Museum, visit www.wittemuseum.org.
11/4/2021
