About Us
Our Mission
The Austin History Center Association (AHCA) is the friends group of the Austin History Center (AHC). AHCA's mission is to ensure that the diverse stories of Austin and Travis County are discovered, collected, presented, and preserved through fundraising AHC operations and producing timely history-based programming.
Our HISTORY
The Austin History Center Association, a 501(c) 3 non-profit citizen based group founded in 1980, supports the vital history and records which have been curated by the Austin Public Library (APL) staff beginning with Katherine Drake Hart in 1954 and continuing with City Archivist and Center Manager Mike Miller today.
Our PLANS for the FUTURE
Currently, the staff of the APL is aggressively working to bring the two original central library buildings – the current AHC building and the John Henry Faulk Central Library building – up to code and repair. The Austin City Council has issued contracts for the construction, approved by voters in bond elections in 2012 and 2018. Completion of these important safety and code upgrades on both buildings is expected by the end of 2023.
Beyond that, AHCA and its citizen-based membership will be involved in developing an Austin History Central Master Plan. AHCA is also exploring interest and support to raise the monies in the community to convert both the current AHC and Faulk buildings into a world-class Research and Archival History Central Campus, to ensure Austin’s diverse past is fully available for understanding and presentation to future generations on how Our Austin Story evolved into modern Austin.
​
Read more about these visionary goals, along with 17 others related to AHCA’s traditional programming to support the History Center, in the AHCA’s 2020 Program of Work.
​
