Spotlights on upcoming events, quirky trip themes, fascinating histories, and behind-the-scenes explorations of the history, heritage, and culture of Texas. Read about it and then get out there and experience it for yourself!
Lakes Trail Region
The Fort Worth Stockyards: 135 Years of Western Heritage
As we celebrate the 135th anniversary of the Fort Worth Stockyards in 2025, it's an opportune moment to reflect on…
Forts Trail Region
Our Top 5 Travel Trends for 2025 and the Texas Heritage Destinations to Experience Them
In 2025, travelers are turning to destinations that offer more than just a getaway—they’re searching for meaningful adventures steeped in…
Brazos Trail Region
Our Top 5 Stories of 2024
It's hard to surprise our audience of seasoned travelers, but our writers managed to uncover a few hidden gems that…
Brazos Trail Region
The Past Is All Around You. We Can Show You Where.
You know that feeling you get when you visit a place and you suddenly understand ... Something. Happened. Here. We…
Galveston Historic Overnights: Levy’s Electric House
Galveston Historic Overnights: The Wharf Worker’s Cottage
Galveston Historic Overnights: The Widower’s Townhouse
Galveston Historic Overnights: The German Cottage
Galveston Historic Overnights: Mrs. Wise’s Craftsman
Galveston Historic Overnights: Treaccar’s Rental Craftsman
Forest Trail Region
6 Cozy Historic Homes to Explore this Winter in Texas
Nothing reflects the remarkable history of venerable Texas like exploring the physical destinations where day-to-day life once occurred for residents…
City Sidewalks, Busy Sidewalks
It's the most wonderful time of the year to visit a historic Main Street District in Texas! After all, it's…
Forts Trail Region
Relive Holiday Heritage at State Historic Sites
Unique holiday celebrations are happening at State Historic Sites all month long. Keep reading to learn more about candlelit historic…
Forest Trail Region
Lots and Lots of Pretty Things
Museums across the state provided us with letters, postcards, and other epistolary ephemera that paint a picture of yonder days…
Hill Country Trail Region
Walk in Famous Footsteps
Sit at the very table where so-and-so once dined! Catch a show where ol' what's-her-name played that tune! Discover ten…
Brazos Trail Region
Travel the World Without Ever Leaving Texas
Everyone knows Texas is a big state. But when you can travel the world from your own backyard, Texas becomes…
Mountain Trail Region
Holland Hotel — Alpine, TX
The original Hotel Holland was built in the 1880s. The one Trost worked on is a few store fronts up…
Mountain Trail Region
Perry Mansion — Terlingua, TX
It was not my first time to see the Perry Mansion, I’d seen it up on the hill many times…
Mountain Trail Region
Davis Mountains Scenic Loop
When visiting the Big Bend Region, be sure to make time to spend a day or two in Fort Davis.
Mountain Trail Region
Gage Hotel
The town of Marathon came into being with the coming of the Texas and New Orleans Railroad in 1882 and…
Mountain Trail Region
Hotel Paisano
The striking Hotel Paisano, historically known as El Paisano Hotel, got off to a rocky start as construction workers broke…
Mountain Trail Region
Hotel El Capitan
Hotel El Capitan was built in 1930 by the Gateway Hotel Chain, led by Charles Bassett, at the crossroads of…
Lakes Trail Region
Discover These 8 African American History Sites in Dallas
As one of the last states to inform enslaved people of their freedom, Texas shares an interesting relation with its…
Hill Country Trail Region
7 Hispanic Heritage Sites in San Antonio
Formerly part of Mexico and Spain, Texas has deep Hispanic roots. Much of the food, entertainment, and celebrations Texans enjoy…
Hill Country Trail Region
German Historical Sites in the Hill Country Region
German immigrants initially sought sanctuary in Texas from political and religious persecution. Many settled in the Hill Country, where the…
Brazos Trail Region
Top Picnic Spots with Texas History
As Texans continue to seek creative ways to explore our state safely, the Texas Historical Commission is offering ideas for…
Brazos Trail Region
Healthy Activities and Texas History at Our State Historic Sites
2021 presented new opportunities to explore activities and travel throughout the Lone Star State. Many of our state historic sites…
Plains Trail Region
Exploring the Quanah Parker Trail
Dozens of arrows, 22 feet tall, pierce the landscape of the Panhandle Plains. They commemorate Quanah Parker, last chief of…
Hill Country Trail Region
Historic Road Trip: Fredericksburg to Johnson City
The Hill Country is the birthplace of former President Lyndon Baines Johnson and the home of descendants of thousands of…
Forest Trail Region
Historic Road Trip: Nacogdoches and San Augustine
East Texas is a special place. From the tall pines, to the historic downtowns, and the unique lodging and dining…
Plains Trail Region
Historic Road Trip: Amarillo and Canyon
Clear skies, wide open spaces, and spectacular scenic vistas immediately jump to mind when you think of the Texas Panhandle…
Lakes Trail Region
Historic Road Trip: Denison to Clarksville
Settled by Native Americans, conquered by Spaniards, then included as part of Mexico, this region is rich with history and…
Hill Country Trail Region
Historic Road Trip: San Antonio
When San Antonio visitors venture beyond the River Walk area, they find a remarkable range of heritage tourism sites in…
Tropical Trail Region
Historic Road Trip: South Texas Coastal Bend
The Texas coast stretches 350 miles from South Padre Island to the Louisiana border, extending through a diverse array of…
Brazos Trail Region
Historic General Stores in Texas
There are few things that feel more authentically Texas than stopping at a little general store and picking up some…
Brazos Trail Region
Visit Eight State Historic Sites to Experience the Republic of Texas Era
Step back in time and experience the period of the Texas Republic in person or virtually at one of these…
Hill Country Trail Region
Kerrville, Main Street City, Celebrates Its Musical Heritage
This spring, come to Kerrville for the music, stay for the history!
Hill Country Trail Region
Barbecue And Brew
My husband Josh and I have never been the type to frequent chain restaurants or order the same take-out week…
Historic Hotels And Lodging: Sam Houston May Not Have Slept Here
Nothing beats a good night's sleep followed by a full day's worth of adventure. It's why we travel.
Hill Country Trail Region
All Aboard: A Trip on the Hill Country Flyer
My wife and I are always looking for fun family activities to do with our seven-year-old son, Parker, especially anything…
Forest Trail Region
Missions
When you think of missions in Texas you might imagine benevolent brothers in brown robes ringing bells, or spending hours…
Tropical Trail Region
Refugio to Zapata: Texans at War
War has always played a major role in shaping the state’s history.
Wildlife Refuges
The state’s wildlife refuges are some of the first places in our history set aside for the protection of wildlife…
Tropical Trail Region
Republic of the Rio Grande
The Rio Grande Valley, home to balmy weather, subtropical species, and lots of wintering Texans, spent a brief period of…
Forest Trail Region
Outlaws and Legends of the Big Thicket
The natural characteristics of the historic Big Thicket in east Texas made it an ideal setting for ghost stories and…
Plains Trail Region
Old Tascosa and a Shirttail to Hang On To
Once known as “Cowboy Capital of the Plains,” the community of Old Tascosa provided an easy crossing along the Canadian…
Zoos and Aquariums
As we’ve gained a greater understanding of the natural environment around us, we’ve begun to reevaluate our system for the…
Lakes Trail Region
North Central Texas During the Civil War
During the 1850’s, many North Texans were subsistence farmers from the Upper South and Midwest; areas with little or no…
Brazos Trail Region
Rosenwald Schools
In 1917, the Rosenwald Fund, established by Sears, Roebuck and Company CEO Julius Rosenwald, provided matching finances to communities who…
Tropical Trail Region
South Padre Island to Laredo: Steamboats and Borderland Culture
Imagine a balmy stretch of the Rio Grande River flowing calmly in a 19th century morning light. Drifting fog lifts…
Historic Texas Jails: “I Swear, Sheriff! The Horse Is Mine!”
The state's first penitentiary was completed in Huntsville in the mid-1800s, and its first prisoner was a horse thief from…
