Digging into Texas History: Texas Archeology Month 2025

Past Matters, Fall 2025, Published 10/21/2025
By Virginia Moore, Archeologist Specialist, Texas Historical Commission

As the THC Archeology Division Director and Texas State Archeologist Brad Jones will cheerily tell you all year long, “October is Texas Archeology Month!”

TAM is off to a strong start with more than 70 events on the statewide calendar and interactive map. Activities are taking place in communities across Texas through the efforts of museums, schools, libraries, parks, county historical commissions, clubs, and other partners who are engaging the public in archeology and heritage education.

Nearly 18,000 pinch pot kits have been distributed to support these programs. Roughly 7,000 of those went directly to public schools across 18 counties, helping teachers bring hands-on archeology into their classrooms. The remaining kits were distributed to libraries, museums, state parks, historical groups, and local clubs in 29 counties, expanding the reach of public programming throughout the state.

The TAM Kickoff Fair at the Bullock Texas State History Museum welcomed close to 1,900 visitors. The fair featured 36 activity booths hosted by partner organizations, including a booth where attendees could make their own pinch pots using materials purchased through this grant. A special screening of “Stones are Speaking” in the Spirit Theater concluded the day and was met with an enthusiastic response from attendees, further highlighting the public’s interest in Texas archeology.

The growing number of events and broad distribution of educational materials reflect the strong commitment and collaboration of partners statewide. the Friends of the Texas Historical Commission is truly appreciative to everyone who has supported and contributed to making this year’s Texas Archeology Month a success. We want to especially thank H-E-B for their continued support of Texas Archeology Month with a grant supporting the Pinch-Pot program. Providing opportunities like these for hands-on learning of archeology and Texas history is a key focus for the Commission and for the Friends.