Publications

Southwestern Historical Quarterly · January 2026

Surveying the Capitol Land Reservation in Texas

During the closing years of the 1870s, vast areas of public lands owned by the State of Texas remained underutilized and their value unrealized as the state exited the Reconstruction period.

Published in

Southwestern Historical Quarterly

Issue

Vol. CXXIX, no. 3 · January 2026

Pages

335–364

Notes

63

Figures

9

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ShownPage one of field notes of work done by H. A. Wiley, compass man for J.T. Munson. Courtesy of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission

CiteAustin Allison, “Surveying the Capitol Land Reservation in Texas,” Southwestern Historical Quarterly CXXIX, no. 3 (January 2026): 335–364, https://doi.org/10.1353/swh.2026.a982690.

Authentic Texas · Summer 2025

Lipscomb County Courthouse

A Prairie Landmark with Enduring Presence

Published in

Authentic Texas

Issue

Summer 2025

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ShownLipscomb County Courthouse — Lipscomb, Texas Photograph by Austin Allison

CiteAustin Allison, “Lipscomb County Courthouse: A Prairie Landmark with Enduring Presence,” Authentic Texas, Summer 2025.

Panhandle-Plains Historical Review · 2025

‘Opportunity Knocking’

The Vaughan Land Company and Early Bailey County Development

The settlement of the Llano Estacado during the closing decades of the 1800s and first decades of the 1900s entails the narrative of many facets of contemporary American life.

Published in

Panhandle-Plains Historical Review

Issue

Vol. 96 · 2025

Pages

40–65

Notes

106

Figures

6

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Shown“A Texas Steer” pamphlet issued in 1907 by the Texas & Southwest Colonization Company. Courtesy of the Beinecke Library, Yale University

CiteAustin Allison, “‘Opportunity Knocking’: The Vaughan Land Company and Early Bailey County Development,” Panhandle-Plains Historical Review 96 (2025): 40–65.

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal · November 29, 2024

Albert Pike and His Journey to Ransom Canyon

Pre-Civil War depictions of the Llano Estacado are rare, with pre-Texas Revolution versions even more scarce.

Published in

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

Issue

November 29, 2024

Figures

2

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ShownAlbert Pike, undated portrait

CiteAustin Allison, “Albert Pike and His Journey to Ransom Canyon,” Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, November 29, 2024.

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal · January 28, 2024

The Sharps Rifle, Buffalo Hunting, and the South Plains

Dating to 1848, the Sharps rifle and its patented breech-loading, falling block design was a go-to firearm for snipers and long-distance shooters due to its accuracy and ease of use.

Published in

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

Issue

January 28, 2024

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Shown1911 illustration of a buffalo stand Bert Judia

CiteAustin Allison, “The Sharps Rifle, Buffalo Hunting, and the South Plains,” Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, January 28, 2024.

Authentic Texas · Winter 2024

The Remnants of the Southwest Conference

The Story of a Landmark Archival Collection

Conference realignment. It is the periodic buzzword that makes the rounds of college athletics for the past three or more decades as schools and conferences aim to sweeten their television contracts.

Published in

Authentic Texas

Issue

Winter 2024

Figures

2

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ShownSouthwest Collection/Special Collections Library — Lubbock, Texas Photograph by Austin Allison

CiteAustin Allison, “The Remnants of the Southwest Conference: The Story of a Landmark Archival Collection,” Authentic Texas, Winter 2024.

Authentic Texas · Spring 2023

Tumbleweed Smith and the Sounds of Texas

Published in

Authentic Texas

Issue

Spring 2023

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CiteAustin Allison, “Tumbleweed Smith and the Sounds of Texas,” Authentic Texas, Spring 2023.

Authentic Texas · Fall 2021

Comfortably Lodged

Transforming historic county jails into silos for historical and cultural heritage

Published in

Authentic Texas

Issue

Fall 2021

Figures

3

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ShownJail cell at the historic Sutton County Jail, 2021 — Sonora, Texas Photograph by Austin Allison

CiteAustin Allison, “Comfortably Lodged: Transforming historic county jails into silos for historical and cultural heritage,” Authentic Texas, Fall 2021.

Caprock Chronicles · 2021

Tahoka Lake

Published in

Caprock Chronicles

Issue

2021

Pages

55–56

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ShownTahoka Lake, 2016 — Lynn County, Texas Photograph by Austin Allison

CiteAustin Allison, “Tahoka Lake,” in Caprock Chronicles: More Tales of the Llano Estacado, ed. David J. Murrah and John T. (Jack) Becker (Charleston, South Carolina: The History Press, 2021), 55–56.

Journal of the West · 2019

A Spring Sprung It

Tracing and Understanding the True Genesis of North America’s Longest River

North America’s longest river emanates from an elevated canyon nestled in the Centennial Mountains and Centennial Valley of southwestern Montana and meanders through miles of mountains, forests, and plains to discharge ultimately into the Gulf of Mexico more than 3,700 miles downstream.

Published in

Journal of the West

Issue

Vol. 58, no. 3 · 2019

Pages

6–21

Notes

29

Figures

11

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ShownUtmost spring of the Missouri River at the head of Culver’s Canyon. Lillian Culver described the spring as coming “from under a large black rock on the side of the mountain.” Near this site, modern hikers and explorers erected a rock mound under which is buried a container for visitors to deposit their names. Photograph courtesy of the author

CiteAustin Allison, “A Spring Sprung It: Tracing and Understanding the True Genesis of North America’s Longest River,” Journal of the West 58, no. 3 (2019): 6–21.

Southwestern Archivist · February 2019

Unusual Annotations in Stephen F. Austin’s 1835 Map of Texas Tell Early Texas History

Published in

Southwestern Archivist

Issue

Vol. 42, no. 1 · February 2019

Figures

2

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ShownHand drawn edit to Nueces with Mission, 1835 Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library, Texas Tech University

CiteAustin Allison, “Unusual Annotations in Stephen F. Austin’s 1835 Map of Texas Tell Early Texas History,” Southwestern Archivist 42, no. 1 (February 2019).

Archivation Exploration · 2018

Maps and Newspapers in the Southwest Collection

Published in

Archivation Exploration

Issue

Vol. 3, no. 2 · 2018

Figures

2

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ShownGerman-Texas Civil War Newspaper (1864) Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library, Texas Tech University

CiteAustin Allison, “Maps and Newspapers in the Southwest Collection,” Archivation Exploration 3, no. 2 (2018).

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal · September 2, 2017

Accounts Vary on Location of 1877 Battle of Yellow House Canyon

Precisely locating the 1877 battle of Yellow House Canyon remains a puzzle.

Published in

Lubbock Avalanche-Journal

Issue

September 2, 2017

Figures

2

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ShownIllustration to accompany account of the battle of Yellow House Canyon. Drawn by Bert Judia. 1911

CiteAustin Allison, “Accounts Vary on Location of 1877 Battle of Yellow House Canyon,” Lubbock Avalanche-Journal, September 2, 2017.

West Texas Historical Review · 2014

Newspapers, Oil, and Railroad Land

Published in

West Texas Historical Review

Issue

Vol. 90 · 2014

Pages

129–135

Figures

7

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CiteAustin Allison, “Newspapers, Oil, and Railroad Land,” West Texas Historical Review 90 (2014): 129–135.

West Texas Historical Association Year Book · 2012

JA Cattle Company

Published in

West Texas Historical Association Year Book

Issue

Vol. 88 · 2012

Pages

173–175

Figures

2

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ShownWarranty deed from Charles Goodnight to Cornelia Adair, executed at Palo Duro and acknowledged before R. B. Stephens, notary public, Armstrong County, March 15, 1886. JA Cattle Company Records, Southwest Collection/Special Collections Library, Texas Tech University.

CiteAustin Allison, “JA Cattle Company,” West Texas Historical Association Year Book 88 (2012): 173–175.