The Institute of Texan Cultures was established by the Fifty-ninth Legislature on May 27, 1965. The agency was directed to develop and implement an appropriate plan for the state's participation in HemisFair '68 to plan exhibits related to the history of Texas, its development, resources, and contributions; and to design and erect a building suited to housing these exhibits, giving due consideration to its utility for state purposes after the fair. The institute, a permanent state agency located on HemisFair grounds in San Antonio, was designed to study the ethnic groups that settled in Texas. While not a museum, the institute displayed relics, artifacts, and personal memorabilia, but only those that had a direct connection with telling the story of the people in each ethnic group. The exhibits made use of sound, color, movement, and atmospheric design. R. Henderson Shuffler guided the research projects and formed the original staff. (Source: Tiller, David C. University of Texas Institute of Texan Cultures, Handbook of Texas Online. http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/UU/kcu25.html . Accessed 17 September 2008.)
The Institute of Texan Cultures Library was established in 1965 as a repository for books and images of artifacts being collected by researchers preparing exhibits for the Texas Pavilion.
From the guide to the Institute of Texan Cultures Library Collection of HemisFair '68 Materials MS 292., 1965-1994, (University of Texas at San Antonio Libraries Special Collections.)
