Site File Archives and Services

TexSite is a free program developed by the Texas Historical Commission (THC) for site data recording. The site data is provided to TARL, exported from the software as a digital file (.csv). This file is then uploaded to the Texas Archeological Sites Atlas making the basic site information available to qualified researchers via the Texas Historical Site Atlas. This portion of the Atlas is restricted to approved users only. Information about the THC's TexSite software can be found on their website here.

A TexSite form is the basic information about a site. Although we understand that very detailed information about a site may not be available when the site is initially recorded, the form should be  completed as soon as possible. The site owner must be provided; responding with "N/A" is not acceptable. Digital data should be submitted as an email attachment(s) at trinomials@austin.utexas.edu. Maps and other attachments may be submitted in any conventional file format. ArcGIS shapefiles of site locations are required; please contact TARL for alternatives if you are not able to generate a shapefile of the site location.

The process outlined above and stated fees for incoming site data forms also apply when documenting a return visit to a site under other circumstances; e.g., a "revisit" to a previously recorded site generated through a new phase of work. Revisit site forms supply extremely valuable information documenting how site conditions change through time as well as how different researchers assess a given site. They also provide information on what new work has been done on a site. The form should be completed with annotations about the data observed on the revisit. Each revisit form should be accompanied by a topographic map showing the site in its present configuration.

NOTE: Please send one (compiled) TexSite .csv file (see below) with all of the sites for which you are requesting trinomials, rather than a separate .csv file for each. Likewise, it is easier to deal with a single shapefile containing all of the relevant site boundaries rather than a separate shapefile for each.

Send trinomial requests to trinomials@austin.utexas.edu

The archeological portion of the Texas Historical Sites Atlas is restricted to qualified, approved users and there is no charge for access. To apply for an account as an approved user, visit the Atlas registration web page here. The Atlas is an extremely useful tool that is being continually improved and updated. Archeological data are provided by TARL for dissemination on the Atlas; other categories of cultural resource data are generated and/or maintained by the Texas Historical Commission.

A fee is charged to all cultural resource management projects and other funded research, including those conducted by state agencies (please see section on fees below).