San Marcos: Texas Music Collection at The Wittliff Collections

The Wittliff Collections is a nationally famous research center, archive, museum, and cultural treasure barn perched on the seventh floor of the Albert B. Alkek Library at Texas State University in San Marcos. It’s the place where the stories of Texas, the Southwest, and Mexico are collected, preserved, and presented through the words, pictures, and music of the folks who lived ’em and sang ’em.

The Texas Music Collection celebrates the Lone Star State’s sonic diversity — from back-porch country to San Antonio Tejano grooves — gathering primary artifacts, recordings, documents, and memorabilia that tell Texas music’s stories.

Highlights of the archive include:

Willie Nelson: Multiple archives including handwritten song lyrics (yes, including classics like “On the Road Again”), rare photos, audio/video recordings, promotional materials, and even a songbook he made as a kid.

Jerry Jeff Walker: Master tapes, handwritten lyrics, photographs, and personal artifacts — even a pair of custom lizard-skin boots crafted for him.

Stevie Ray Vaughan: Interviews, photos, recordings and other intimate documentation of the blues legend’s life and work.

Ray Benson / Asleep at the Wheel: Chronicling Western Swing through decades of performance and memorabilia.

Selena Research Collection: Interviews, clippings, publicity materials, and ephemera related to the Tejano superstar.

Austin City Limits / Bill Arhos Archive: Documents the history of the iconic PBS music series that helped brand Austin “Live Music Capital.”

Texas Western Swing Hall of Fame materials, Panther Hall photos, Conjunto and Tejano materials, and more.

This Texas Music Collection is a living jukebox of Texas culture. Whether it’s a songwriter’s draft on a napkin or a Texas Music Hall of Fame guitar, the collection gives scholars, fans, and curious wanderers a chance to hear how Texas felt in every chord and lyric.