Texas Land Commissioner Dawn Buckingham has announced a prestigious recognition for the Texas General Land Office’s latest historical publication — a comprehensive atlas of the Lone Star State’s cartographic evolution that has captured the attention of Texas history enthusiasts.
The book, “Texas Takes Shape: A History of Maps from the General Land Office,” published by University of Texas Press in 2025, received second place in the Presidio La BahÃa Award from the Sons of the Republic of Texas on January 26, 2026. The award recognizes outstanding contributions to Texas historical literature.
Mapping Texas History
“I am honored that the Sons of the Republic of Texas—valued partners in preserving and celebrating Texas history—have recognized Texas Takes Shape: A History in Maps from the General Land Office with second place for the 2025 Presidio La BahÃa Award,” said Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, M.D., in a statement from the GLO.
The publication represents the first comprehensive effort to compile and contextualize the GLO’s extensive collection of over 45,000 historic maps. These cartographic treasures, both manuscript and printed, tell the story of Texas’s transformation from colonial frontiers to modern statehood through clear essays that provide historical context for each featured map.
Why maps? They’ve long been more than mere navigational tools — they’re visual documents of political ambition, cultural perspective, and territorial evolution. The GLO’s collection, now partially showcased in this award-winning volume, offers a unique lens into how Texas literally took shape over centuries.
The GLO has been the steward of these historical documents for generations, but this marks the first time they’ve been compiled into a single narrative work that traces the state’s cartographic evolution.
From Colony to Republic to State
Structured as a two-part, nine-chapter collection, “Texas Takes Shape” features over 100 maps that document European colonization, Spanish and Mexican rule, the Republic of Texas era, and finally, Texas as a modern U.S. state. The chronological approach gives readers a visual timeline of Texas’s political and geographical development.
Commissioner Buckingham, who describes herself as a ninth-generation Texan, expressed personal pride in the project. “As a ninth-generation Texan, I am honored to have a hand in the production of this uniquely written history of Texas and the meticulous research that supports it,” she noted when the book was first announced.
The 2025 publication is currently available for order at $48.71 including tax — a price point that makes this scholarly work accessible to history buffs, educators, and cartography enthusiasts alike.
For the Sons of the Republic of Texas, an organization dedicated to perpetuating the memory of the early pioneers who maintained Texas independence, the award recognizes the book’s contribution to understanding how maps shaped perceptions and policies throughout Texas history.
The recognition comes at a time when interest in historical cartography has seen renewed interest, with digital mapping tools making historical documents more accessible than ever. Still, there’s something irreplaceable about seeing these maps in print, carefully reproduced with the context that brings them to life.
For those who’ve ever wondered how the distinctive shape of Texas evolved from vague colonial boundaries to its iconic silhouette, “Texas Takes Shape” offers not just answers, but a visual journey through time — one that the Sons of the Republic of Texas have now formally acknowledged as an essential addition to Texan historical literature.
