The 2026 Survey of Texas Museums is live!
The Survey of Texas Museums from Texas Historical Commission Museum Services is a statewide survey that will help inform decisions impacting our work for years to come. This is a chance to put your lived experience to work, letting us know what you and your colleagues need, what’s missing, what’s working, and where we should aim higher. Your input will directly guide priorities, resources, and support designed to strengthen the work of history doers in institutions of every size and setting.
If you work or volunteer at a Texas museum or historical organization, please take this survey. The more voices we hear, the better we can build services that reflect the full breadth, complexity, and ambition of Texas museums and historic sites.
This survey can be completed in about 5 minutes.
Texas is home to over 1,000 local history museums. Whether housed in a historic structure or a state-of-the-art new building, each one is dedicated to telling the story of a community’s unique history. Collectively, they preserve the real places and the real things that tell the whole story of Texas.
The Museum Services Program enables small history museums to better carry out their missions by helping them to increase their capacity for meeting professional standards. We do this by providing the following services at no cost:
- Training
- Resources
- Consultations
- Communications
To be included in the THC Atlas, a history museum must exhibit and interpret objects and stories in a structure designed for public visitation, on a regular schedule at least 120 days per year.
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Professional Development Webinar Series
More Webinars are Coming Soon!
Resources
The Helpful Resources section below provides a number of downloadable resource lists, articles, and other useful information for museums. All previous Museum Services Webinars are archived and available to view at any time. The Connect and Learn section below provides links to trainings hosted by other organizations and services, as well as listings of museum professional organizations. Grants and Fundraising offers resources for grant-writing, fundraising ideas, and an extensive list of grant opportunities relevant to museums in Texas. Review our information on Museum Consultants Working in Texas.
Consultations
Program staff can provide free, individualized assistance and support to museums in any aspect of museum operations, including but not limited to:
- Starting, planning, or reorganizing a museum
- Mission statements, strategic planning, and professional ethics
- Disaster preparedness and recovery
- Collections interpretation and educational programs
- Exhibit planning and design
- Board development and relations
- Volunteer recruitment and training
- Fundraising and special events
- Marketing and social media
- Collections care and security
Communications
Program staff sends email notices on timely information about current trends, available resources, upcoming grant deadlines, training opportunities, and other types of assistance.
Contact Us
If you have questions about the Museum Services Program, please contact the program administrator using the information listed here.
-
Phone:
+1 512-463-6427 -
Email:
museums@thc.texas.gov -
Address:
P.O. Box 12276
Austin, TX 78711
United States