Published: July 18, 2008 10:12 pm      

Group meeting in Huntsville because of historical ties

The Texas Historical Foundation, a private, Austin-based organization devoted to preserving Texas history, has chosen Huntsville as the site of its quarterly board of directors meeting.

The board will hold its business meeting in Huntsville this morning, during which members will hear proposals and approve grants for the next quarter, but not before an extensive tour of Huntsville’s historic sites.

The foundation chooses a different site every three months to host its meeting, and executive director Gene Krane said Huntsville was chosen this quarter because of its strong ties to the early history of Texas.

“Each community has its own part of Texas history to share,” Krane said. “Huntsville is the home of Sam Houston, but no one could remember the last time we visited here, so we decided it was time to come again.

The board arrived in town on Thursday evening and started their tour Friday morning at the Sam Houston statue.

After a brief presentation by the staff of the statue visitors’ center, the board visited the statue itself, then went on a driving tour of Huntsville historic sites that included the town square, the Texas Prison Museum, and the Huntsville Walls Unit.

“We felt that if we were going to visit Huntsville, the things we really needed to see were Sam Houston sites and the Prison,” Krane said.

Since 1953, the foundation has dedicated itself to a two-part mission.

The first priority is education. The foundation puts out a quarterly magazine, Heritage, releases instructional videos, and helps to offer educational materials to other organizations.

Secondly, the foundation works with individual community and organizations to provide funding for restoration and maintenance of historical sites, including work in archeology, preservation of historical documents, and renovation of historic structures.

“Anything that’s related to Texas history,” Krane said. “We’re interested in working on it and we're always looking forward to people contacting us.”

While Huntsville has never had direct involvement with the foundation in the past, Krane noted that the Texas Prison Museum played an integral role in creating a special edition of Heritage magazine devoted to Texas prisons.

Krane also noted that there are ready and willing to work with the community on Huntsville history.

“That’s how we’re going to use the day,” Krane said of the Friday tour. “We're going to get a feel for the community and the progress that’s been made on historical restoration here, then we hope that anyone who has an idea will contact us.”

Anyone seeking more information on the Texas Historical Foundation is urged to visit their website at www.texashistoricalfoundation.org.