Texas travels

Visit these 6 Texas inns and B&Bs filled with history and secrets

If these walls could talk: Georgia O’Keeffe’s favorite hangout in the Panhandle. Ulysses S. Grant’s East Texas escape. A wharf worker’s cottage in Galveston. From history-filled bungalows to hidden-gem hideaways, these legendary lodgings are some of the most storied in the state.

The Texas Historical Commission is enticing travelers to bypass big hotels and check into historically significant bed & breakfasts through an initiative called Historic Overnights. Launched in 2023, the program connects preservation professionals with property owners of B&Bs to help research and share their captivating stories from the past.

“Historic Overnights is a unique way for travelers to discover in-depth details about historic places and experience local history in a more immersive way,” says Sarah Page, the state's heritage tourism program coordinator.

Historic Overnights launched in Galveston; more than a dozen vintage lodgings on the island are now featured, along with places in the northern Hill Country. More are being added across the state, the organization says.

For travelers inspired to find storied stays of their own, the Texas Historical Commission also keeps an updated site with historic hotels, B&Bs, and short-term rentals

Here are six historic lodgings (including one in nearby Galveston) where guests can sleep where history happened. They not only welcome travelers with Texas hospitality, but with authentic lore that turns road trips into time travel.

Elvis House, Waco Elvis became friends with the radio DJ who owned this Waco home in the 1950s.Photo courtesy of The Elvis House

The Elvis House in Waco: Bungalow fit for The King
Elvis has left the building — but at the height of his fame in the 1950s, he often stayed in this pretty red brick house and played its piano. He had struck up a friendship with the rock 'n' roll radio DJ who lived there, and considered the 1924-built hideaway a "home away from home" while stationed nearby in Fort Hood. It has been thoroughly updated and outfitted with Elvis memorabilia and mid-century furnishings, including a record-changing console from the 1960s. Elvis also liked to hang out at Waco’s Elite Café (now Chip and Joanna Gaines’ Magnolia Table) and neighboring Health Camp, and you can still visit both restaurants today. Sadly, neither offers a peanut butter and banana sandwich (The King’s favorite) on the menu. Rates start around $99 per night. 2807 Lasker Ave., Waco.

Galveston Speakeasy Cottage: Breezy seaside survivor
This cute bungalow’s funky, mismatched colors and oddball woods reveal a secret: It was constructed from salvaged materials from burned buildings following a massive fire in 1885. The one-bedroom, one-bathroom home then survived the Great Galveston Hurricane of 1900, the worst natural disaster in American history. It served as a rental property for wharf workers for most of its life, and its prime location now attracts travelers to the coastal city. Oak floors, crystal doorknobs, and a speakeasy-style door window ooze authentic character. Rates start at $185 per night. 1212 19th St., Galveston.

Relax like Georgia O'Keefe in the colorful, antique-filled Hudspeth House.Photo courtesy of Hudspeth House

Hudspeth House in Canyon: Panhandle painter's paradise
Cozy up by the original gas fireplaces in this 1909 charmer with shimmering stained glass, hardwood floors, and seven bedrooms with antique furniture. The DIY mail-order home was built from a Sears & Roebuck catalog kit that contained everything from pre-cut lumber and nails to a 75-page instruction book. (IKEA, eat your heart out.) Close to the courthouse square, it was the favorite lunch stop for a young painter named Georgia O’Keeffe, who lived in the Texas Panhandle town of Canyon before blazing a trail through the art world. The B&B is still known for its delicious food, with home-cooked breakfasts of green chile quiche, fresh-baked pastries, and buttery French toast. Rates start at $146 per night. 1905 4^th Ave. #4023, Canyon.

Officer’s Quarters at Presidio La Bahía in Goliad: National historic landmark
Have you ever had a 300-year-old Spanish fortress all to yourself? You’ll find a four-bedroom apartment inside heavy bastions and the thick rock walls of this Goliad landmark, a formidable fort in Southeast Texas that withstood several sieges. It’s also where Texian soldiers were imprisoned before being marched out and massacred during the Texas Revolution (remember Goliad?) and where the first Texas Declaration of Independence was signed. Overnight guests today get access to the Presidio’s capacious inner courtyard, along with a kitchen, dining room with fireplace, and A/C. The Quarters book up far in advance and are now accepting reservations for 2026. Rates start at $200 per night. 217 US Hwy. 183, Goliad.

The Excelsior House Excelsior House in Jefferson has hosted Ulysses S. Grant, Oscar Wilde, and Lady Bird Johnson. Photo courtesy of Excelsior House

Excelsior House in Jefferson: Poltergeist in the Piney Woods
While not technically a B&B, Excelsior House certainly feels like one with its clawfoot bathtubs, four-poster beds, and throwback blend of Southern grace and Victorian romance. Open since 1858, it has hosted a stream of VIPs, including Civil War general Ulysses S. Grant, poet Oscar Wilde, and First Lady Lady Bird Johnson. Crystal chandeliers and ornate mahogany furnishings evoke the heady days when Jefferson was a wealthy riverboat town. Step out to the wrought-iron balcony and survey the historical streetscape as horsedrawn carriages clip-clop on the bricks below. And if you’re looking for the most haunted spot in Texas, this might be it. Unexplained activities in Room #215 inspired Steven Spielberg to write the horror movie Poltergeist. Rates start at $99 per night plus tax. 211 W Austin St., Jefferson.

Three Danes Inn in Fort Worth: Wild West shootout
Ask to see the bullet hole in this yellow Queen Anne-Victorian from 1904, whose then-owner — a local saloon keeper — was shot to death by a gang of thugs on his own back porch. After a raucous night at his saloon in the city’s rowdy Hell’s Half Acre neighborhood, he returned home with the day’s profits — but he never made it inside. His wife saw it all, and the men were eventually caught. The gorgeous gabled home features a turret and wraparound porch, and each of its five rooms has a private bath. The house is also now home to the Three Danes Baking Company, an acclaimed bakery now serving up sweet treats exclusively to guests of the inn. Rates start around $125 per night. 712 May St., Fort Worth.

Photo courtesy of Hudspeth House

Hudspeth House was a favorite Canyon haunt for artist Georgia O’Keeffe.

bed breakfasts storied stays texas historical commission vintage lodgings historic hotels texas hotels

Now hear this

New Texas museum shines spotlight on Tejano music history

Totally Tejano Hall of Fame and Museum, San Antonio, tejano music

Photo by Edmond Ortiz

Roger Hernandez serves as board president of the Totally Tejano Hall of Fame and Museum.

For a city that proudly calls itself the capital of Tejano music, San Antonio has long been missing a permanent place to honor the genre’s pioneers and preserve its history. That gap officially closed In December with the opening of the Totally Tejano Hall of Fame and Museum at 1414 Fredericksburg Rd.

The music couldn’t have found a better steward than its founder and board president. Roger Hernandez has had his finger on the pulse of Tejano music for decades. His company, En Caliente Productions, has provided a platform for countless performing artists and songwriters in Tejano, conjunto, and regional Mexican music since 1982.

Hernandez says his wife, who ran a shop at Market Square years ago, would often get questions from visitors about the location of a physical Tejano music museum, a thing that simply did not exist. In 2022, he banded together with friends, family, and other local Tejano music supporters to make the nonprofit Hall of Fame a reality.

“I decided I've been in the music scene for over 40 years, it's time to do a museum,” Hernandez recalls.

Hernandez says a brick-and-mortar Tejano music museum has long been needed to remember musical acts and other individuals who grew the genre across Texas and northern Mexico, especially those who are aging. Recently, the community lost famed Tejano music producer Manny Guerra and Abraham Quintanilla, the renowned Tejano singer/songwriter and father of the late superstar Selena Quintanilla-Perez. Both deaths occurred roughly one week after the Totally Tejano museum opened to the public.

“They're all dying. They're all getting older, and we need to acknowledge all these people,” Hernandez says.

The Totally Tejano Museum — named after Hernandez’s Totally Tejano Television Roku streaming — has 5,000 square feet of space packed with plaques, photos, promotional posters, musical instruments, and other memorabilia honoring the pioneers and stars of the beloved genre. Mannequins wear stage outfits from icons like Laura Canales and Flaco Jimenez, and a wall of photos remembers late greats. Totally Tejano Television plays legendary performances on a loop, bringing the exhibits to life.

The newly opened Totally Tejano Hall of Fame and Museum includes a growing collection of memorabilia. Photo by Edmond Ortiz

Hernandez says the museum will soon welcome permanent and rotating exhibits, including traveling shows, a Hall of Fame section, and an area paying homage to Chicano music crossovers, such as the late Johnny Rodriguez, the South Texas singer-songwriter who blended country with Tex-Mex music. Plans call for the organization to hold its inaugural Hall of Fame induction in February 2026.

Eventually, a 2,000 square feet back room will be converted into additional display space and host industry gatherings, community symposiums, and record and video release parties. The museum also plans to add a gift and record shop and a music learning room where visitors can listen to early Tejano music and browse archival photos. Hernandez is already talking with local school districts about educational field trips.

Much like Tejano itself, the museum is a grassroots production. Hernandez and fellow board members have used their own money to rent, renovate, develop, and maintain the museum space. The board also leads the selection of the Hall of Fame honorees and curates the exhibits.

Hernandez has been heartened by the museum’s reception, both from media outlets and music fans around Texas and beyond.

“We had a radio station come in this morning from Houston to interview us,” he says. “People have come in from Lubbock, Texas. We have had people from Midland, Texas. We have another person who emailed us who’s coming in from New York. People are learning all about us.”

That includes many of the musicians who helped shape the genre. Johnny Hernandez, Sunny Ozuna, Elida Reyna, and Danny Martinez from Danny and The Tejanos are among the luminaries who have already graced the halls.

The Totally Tejano Hall of Fame and Museum is now open 10 am-6 pm, Tuesday-Sunday, and closed Monday. Admission is free, but donations are encouraged. Fans can call 210-314-1310 for more information.

san antonio tejano music museums hall of fame music openings