Captain W. C. Tyrrell purchased the First Baptist Church and donated the building to the city for a library in 1923.
The library opened in 1926. It served as the main public library for the city until 1974, when the new library opened. At that time, it became the Tyrrell Historical Library, with a Texana collection and genealogical collection.
In 1987, restoration of the Tyrrell was adopted as a high priority and the restored Tyrrell reopened on July 19, 1990. In addition to the Texana and genealogical book collections, it contains outstanding archives centering on Southeast Texas.
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Archives
Our archives include, but are not limited to, the following material
- Jefferson Beaumont family
- George W. O’Brien Civil War diaries and the O’Brien family papers
- Captain Randolph Owen of Alabama autograph album which includes autographs of Confederate military leaders imprisoned by Union Forces at Johnson’s Island, Ohio after the War Between the States
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Census microfilm and indexes
Census microfilm and indexes: 1790 through 1920 -
Microfilm
- Magna Carta Barons and their descendants (1-7)
- Family History Library Catalog-Localities
- AGLL Catalogue
- Everton Publishers “Roots” cellar
- The Genealogical Helper: 1950-70
- LDS Parish and Vital Records List
- U.S. Postal Guide: alphabetical lists of post offices in 1905
- Materials on many states with particular emphasis on Texas and Louisiana. Included are:
- City directories
- Marriage lists
- Lists of confederate soldiers
- Texas newspapers
- Galveston passenger lists
- Indexes to deeds
- Tax rolls
- Probate records
- Some family genealogies
- and much more!
The Tyrrell Historical Library has begun a new and exciting program called the “Tyrrell Historical Library Digital Collections©”.
Started with a generous donation by the Tyrrell Historical Library Association, this project allows the library to present selected parts of our collections digitally through OCLC’s ContentDM digital portal program. Please click on the link below to begin your journey through the history of Beaumont and Southeast Texas.
There are two ways to access web resources for the Tyrrell Historical Library Archives.
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Digital Collections Portal
- The digital portal allows you to directly access online collections or documents and photographs.
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Master Index to the Archives Collections
- The Master Index allows access to an alphabetical list of collection descriptions.
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