George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center

The George Washington Carver Museum is the first neighborhood museum in Austin dedicated exclusively to African American history. The museum and center are located next to a public library that was created in 1926 to serve the African American community of Austin in the era of segregation. That library became home to a small museum in 1980. A 1998 bond initiative led to the construction of the expansive museum next to the original library. The museum offers exhibits that share the experiences and contributions of African American residents. The museum is housed in a 36,000-square-foot facility with four galleries, a conference room, a classroom, studio, 134-seat theater, and archival space. The galleries feature a core exhibit on Juneteenth, a permanent exhibit on Austin's African American families, an artists’ gallery, and a children’s exhibit on African-American scientists and inventors.

The museum houses an extensive collection of books, photographs, manuscripts, maps, and other materials that document the history of African Americans. It also hosts exhibitions that focus primarily on black history and culture, featuring photographs and artifacts that illuminate different aspects of African American history and culture. The museum is housed in a 1,720 square foot, city owned building that was originally the main public library in Austin and the first library for blacks in the town. The building was moved to east Austin in 1933, where it became the Austin public library's first branch. 

The museum was located in a former library that was known as the "Colored Branch" between its establishment in 1926 and 1947, when the building was renamed the George Washington Carver Library in honor of the famous scientist, activist, and educator. Carver was raised in the Great Plains, having attended the segregated schools of Fort Scott and enduring both Jim Crow and rejection from colleges before achieving an advanced degree in Iowa. In the mid-1970s, east Austin residents lobbied for a larger branch library, which was completed in 1980 on a site adjacent to the old building Janie Harrison, Fanny Lawless, Onie B. Conley, and other community members decided that the original building would be an ideal site for a Black-history museum. Renovations of the old library building began in September 1979, and the museum opened to the public on October 5, 1980, and was expanded with a new facility in 2001. The museum provides invaluable support to Black artists by organizing solo exhibitions of their work and has been hosting the Regional Black Artists exhibition since 1983.

The Carver Museum's permanent collection consists of paintings, prints, family papers, and memorabilia related to Austin African Americans. The museum supplements many programs within the site. It exhibits educational tours, concerts, storytelling, and other activities. It also operates a Youth at Risk program in which people are taught black-and-white photography during sixteen-week courses that culminate in exhibitions of their work. 

The museum is funded by the city, government grants, and donations from corporations and private foundations. The Friends of the Carver, a support group that has been operating since the museum's inception, also provides financial support. The museum had developed an ambitious $11.5 million three-phase plan by 1992 to establish a Black heritage and cultural center with a theater and expanded exhibition and storage space. The Carver Museum is a member of the Texas Association of Museums and the African American Museum Association.

Curlee, Kendall . George Washington Museum, Texas State Historical Association. January 1st, 1995. Accessed May 3rd, 2023. https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/george-washington-carver-museum.

George Washington Carver Museum And Cultural Center, Guide to Austin Architecture. Accessed May 3rd, 2023. https://guidetoaustinarchitecture.com/places/george-washington-carver-museum-and-cultural-center/ .

George Washington Carver Museum, Cultural and Geneaology Center, Austin Texas Gov. Accessed May 3rd, 2023. https://www.austintexas.gov/department/george-washington-carver-museum-cultural-and-genealogy-center .