Jenkins Garrett Collection

Jess Jenkins Garrett (1914-2010) was as a lawyer, businessman, and philanthropist. Garrett was strongly devoted to education and public service. His numerous positions included a role as a member of the University of Texas System Board of Regents (1969-75). In 1965, Arlington State College was transferred from the Texas A&M University System to the University of Texas System, and in 1967, with Garrett’s support, it became the University of Texas at Arlington. In recognition of the new university’s potential, in 1973 he and his wife donated their extensive Texas history collection to UT-Arlington (UTA). Early in his collecting, Garrett recognized the importance of the Mexican War in Texas and American History, and he gave that area special emphasis. During this time, his wife Virginia developed a strong interest in historic maps, and she soon began collecting maps important to the development of Texas, as well as the Gulf of Mexico. From 1990 to 1997, the Garretts donated their extensive atlas and map collections to UTA. Their gifts collectively make up the Jenkins Garrett Library and the Virginia Garrett Cartographic History Library, serving as companion libraries in the UTA Library’s Special Collections. At the time of the initial donation to UTA, the Garrett collection consisted of more than 10,000 items, including books, broadsides, newspapers, graphics, manuscripts, sheet music, currency, and historical materials in other formats. Thousands of other historical resources have been donated by the Garretts to UTA during the decades following their original gift. Mr. Garrett also helped the library raise funds, cultivate other donors, and promote the collection.