EDUCATION:
Each year, the Dallas Historical Society (DHS) serves approximately 15,000 students, providing more than half with free or discounted educational programs. Teachers can choose from a variety of offerings available at either at the Hall of State or in the classroom, which gives students the opportunity to experience Dallas and Texas history though tours, performances, events, exhibitions and Society initiatives through the Access to History program. One popular program features historic characters, dressed in period-appropriate costumes, who recount their live experiences for the students.
PUBLIC PROGRAMMING:
All education programs are aligned with the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) curriculum standards which prepare students for the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) test.
DHS draws from its collection, exhibits, and a network of local historians to educate and present a wide variety of public programming. The Brown Bag Lunch Series allows the community free access to a wide range of historic topics such as The History of Fair Park, Texas Eats and Wild Women of the West. Other public programs include book signings, lectures, panel discussions, hands-on activities, classes, performances, and workshops.
EXHIBITS:
The DHS draws on its vast collection of Dallas and Texas historical artifacts to create unique exhibits at the Hall of State in Fair Park. Companies and institutions in the city can display items from the collection in specially-designed cases as part of the Society's Texas Treasures program.
COLLECTION and PRESERVATION:
The collection of nearly 3 million items at the DHS spans the history of not only the greater Dallas area but the entire state of Texas. The collection covers extraordinary territory, from tales of immigrants who entered Texas before it became a Republic to the emergence of Dallas as a major commercial and cultural center. By teaching and connecting people to their past, DHS helps make history relevant. Each object in The Society's collection is emblematic of real people of a definite time and place.
RESEARCH:
The collection of the DHS is accessible for research via phone, email requests or in person by appointment.
The Dallas Historical Society collects, preserves, and exhibits the unique heritage of Dallas and Texas to educate and inspire present and future generations. Vision statement: The Dallas Historical Society endeavors to be the preeminent resource to explore, preserve, and instill appreciation for the diverse history of Dallas and Texas. Remembering Dallas' past builds her future.
The Dallas Historical Society provides a wonderful opportunity for students and members of the community to discover the history of Dallas and Texas in an engaging and relevant way. We need funding in order to create and continue public programming for our community. We are working to provide more interactive programing in our exhibits; as well as, continuously work to digitize our collection so that is accessible to the general public, funding would help us hire interns to process and digitize the collection. We also need funding to continue to help preserve the over 3 million artifacts in our archives, so that we can exhibit them and use them for educational purposes.
Additionally, we want to be able to connect our surrounding community and the North Texas Area to history by raising funds to help us create new ways to promote and share the history of Texas.
Through partnerships with other community agents, DHS seeks to eliminate the barriers of location and audience. These partnerships will help us to reach a broader and different audience than we could achieve alone. In exchange, DHS provides an avenue for partners to reach new audiences as well through our extensive mailing list and membership. Through technological improvements DHS has made both during the pandemic and ongoing, we are able to reach and include audiences that may not be able to attend events in person. In addition, the new technology has provided captions to assist hearing impaired audiences and we continue to find ways to bridge the gaps and provide equitable access to all.
Organization name
Dallas Historical Society
Causes
Arts, Culture & Humanities, Seniors, Education - K-12
Operating Budget
$1,000,000 - $2,999,999
Counties Served
Collin, Dallas, Denton, Tarrant
Equity Statement
Equity Statement
Address
PO BOX 150038