Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham announced a donation of a historic map collection to the Texas General Land Office.
The gift from Carol Holcomb of Houston, valued at more than $3.5 million, was donated in memory of her husband, Frank.
The collection includes 76 maps dating from 1513 to 1904, which will eventually be displayed in the Frank and Carol Holcomb Map Gallery at the agency.
“The Frank and Carol Holcomb Map Collection represents a historic milestone for the Texas General Land Office and for the people of Texas,” said Commissioner Buckingham. “This remarkable map donation — spanning nearly four centuries of Texas history — further strengthens the GLO’s collection as one of the premier resources for understanding the history, exploration, and development of Texas. It is with gratitude to Mrs. Holcomb, in memory of her husband, Frank, that the GLO accepts this donation for the people of Texas.”
Recognized as one of the nation’s most important private collections of Texas and Western Hemisphere maps, the donation ensures public access for future generations. The gallery remains in early planning stages to showcase the GLO’s archival holdings.
“Frank was a Texan, a Son of the Republic, and had ancestors who settled in East Texas in the early 1830s, including a relative who served in Sam Houston’s army at San Jacinto,” said Carol Holcomb. “Maps were his passion, and as our collection grew, we hoped it would one day find a home in a public institution. Our long-standing relationship with the GLO made it the obvious choice. Thank you to the GLO staff and to Commissioner Buckingham for making Frank’s dream come true.”
The maps cover nearly 400 years, from early Western Hemisphere depictions through Spanish colonial times, the Mexican period, the Republic of Texas era, and into statehood.
Frank Harvey Holcomb, who died before the donation, collected maps passionately alongside his wife Carol, whom he married in 1977. The couple supported other historical organizations, including Old Salem in North Carolina and the Museum of Early Southern Decorative Arts, where Frank served on an advisory board. Carol works as a docent at the Bayou Bend Collection and Gardens, where Frank served on its subcommittee.