Explore “Texas in Turmoil”: A New Digital Resource on 19th-Century Conflict

History is rarely well-ordered. It’s a tapestry of events, lives and conflicts, shaping the world we know today. UTA Libraries, in partnership with the Center for Greater Southwestern Studies and the Day Family Research Lab, brings one such story to life through “Texas in Turmoil,” a digital project illuminating over half a century of conflict in 19th-century Texas.   

 The project began nearly 10 years ago when Sam Haynes, historian and Director of the Center for Greater Southwestern Studies, envisioned a tool to better understand early Texas history.    

“I wanted something that would help me understand Native American activity, and particularly conflict involving white and Mexican settlers,” Haynes said. “So, we started this project that was initially called ‘Borderlands.’”   

 After publishing his book, “Unsettled Land: From Revolution to Republic, the Struggle for Texas,” in 2022, Haynes revisited the project. While the Borderlands website was very interactive and still receives praise from visitors, it still lacked some of the storytelling features Haynes had envisioned to connect people to this history.    

The result is a sophisticated resource mapping recorded instances of violence and conflict in Texas from 1821 to 1879, making complex historical data accessible to students, scholars and the public.   

Day Family Research Lab Provides Critical Support   

The Day Family Research Lab played a pivotal role in transforming “Texas in Turmoil” into an interactive, data-driven resource.  

 Data Visualization Librarian Rubab Shahzad partnered with Haynes and the Center for Greater Southwestern Studies to guide the project’s spatial and visual analysis.    

Using Tableau, Shahzad created data-driven visualizations that reveal trends and patterns within more than a thousand records. Shahzad developed an interactive ArcGIS Dashboard and Timeline Map that allows users to explore how violence fluctuated across regions and over time.    

These tools not only clarify the historical record but also make the data accessible to scholars, students and the public.    

Interactive Map Brings History to Life   

The Texas in Turmoil website brings a complex chapter of Texas history to life through an interactive Story Maps experience. Visitors can explore thousands of documented incidents by tribe, ethnicity, conflict type, timeframe, and county, each data point offering a deeper look into the region’s past. 
 
Bringing this project to life was a collaborative effort. UTA Libraries Senior Web Developer Andrew Leverenz created and launched the original site in 2017 and led project management for its redesign. Web Developer Austin Gilmore expanded the site’s functionality by building the new ArcGIS Story Map landing page, embedding interactive features, and designing a robust search and filter system to help researchers easily explore and analyze the data. 

This partnership between UTA Libraries, the Center for Greater Southwestern Studies, and the Day Family Research Lab demonstrates the impact of combining research, technology, and student engagement to uncover and share stories that shape our understanding of history. 

The project also provided valuable hands-on experience for UTA students at the Center for Greater Southwestern Studies, including Student Intern Nathan Cowley and Student Research Assistants Michele Duncan and Cicada Wick. Each contributed to the project to make the Texas in Turmoil website such a powerful educational resource. 

 The website is live; people can visit the Texas in Turmoil website to explore the resilience, conflict, and transformation that shaped Texas.