Houston Public Library

The Old Vault Collection contains documents, records, and correspondence relating to Texas history. The materials date from as early as 1796 to the late 1890's. The accumulation of these early papers began before the establishment of the Houston Metropolitan Research Center, and were originally kept in the library vault for safekeeping. This arrangement of the material explains the diversity of the collection and its peculiarly eclectic nature.

From the guide to the Old Vault Collection MSS 113., 1796-1890's, (Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library)

This collection, gathered from many sources, is composed of an assortment of material having to do with the history of black Texans. Some of the items in it were donated to the Research Center individually, while others were part of a larger body of donated material to which they bore no direct historical relation. Thus, except for its singular focus on black Americans, this collection is truly miscellaneous.

From the guide to the African American Miscellaneous Collection MSS 210., 1899-1982, (Houston Metropolitan Research Center, Houston Public Library)