Welcome! Established in 2013, the TJC Archive and Special Collections is responsible for identifying, maintaining, and making available records of enduring value that document the history and development of the college.
The Archive also collects materials of interest and significance from alumni and others that help illustrate the college's interaction with the community.
Explore our Digital Collections
Our digital collections represent a small portion of our holdings related to all aspects of the history of Tyler Junior College.
TJC Historical Photo Collection
The TJC Historical Photo Collections documents the history and activities of the college through photographs supplied by a variety of sources. The archive currently has over 9,000 pictures, with over 7,000 digitized. For a brief overview of the types of photographs in this collection: Finding Aid.
The Apache Magazine
The Apache was initiated in 1983 as the official newsletter of the Tyler Junior College Alumni Association. By 1986 it had quickly morphed into the Apache Magazine, the official magazine of the college. Its purpose has always been the same, to keep the college employees, alumni, and friends informed about the activities of the college.
Yearbooks and the Bell Tower
As Tyler Junior College was initially housed in the Tyler High School until moving to its own campus in 1948, the first few years the yearbook, the Alcalde, was a combined yearbook for the two schools. In 1934 the college began publication of their own yearbook, the Apache. The Alcalde was not published in 1933, and the Apache was not published in 1940, 1943, 1944, or 1945. The Apache ceased publication in 1981. The Bell Tower consists of works created solely by Tyler Junior College Students.
TJC Catalog
The Tyler Junior College Catalog has been published annually since 1926. Beginning with the 2016-2017 academic year, the publication of the catalog ceased to be in print and became available online from a link off the college homepage. Also at this time, a mid-year update of the online catalog became available each January. The catalogs are currently being digitized. Contact the Archive if you need to see a catalog not yet available online.
Student Newspapers
Tyler Junior College was established in 1926 and was housed in the Tyler High School until moving to its own campus in 1948. That year, the students began producing a column titled “Junior College News” for the Sunday edition of the Tyler Daily Courier-Times newspaper. This column was briefly titled “The Tyler Teepee” and finally “The Apache Pow-Wow”. In December of 1930, the first independent issue of The Apache Pow-Wow was published by the students, although publication of a column in the Tyler newspaper continued. In the 1931-1932 academic year, a combined high school/college newspaper, The Apache-Lion Pow-Wow was produced. After that year, the college ceased producing a student newspaper until 1937 when publication of The Apache Pow-Wow recommenced. The newspaper went through a series of name changes to The Pow-Wow, The TJC Pow Wow, Tyler Junior College News, The Apache Pow Wow, and finally to its current name, The DrumBeat.
Archive Info
- For information on our collections, how to transfer college records to the archive, or what types of materials we take as donations please review the Acceptance Guidelines.
- The Archive provides digitization services for those who need copies of photos in our collections and also for those who request digitization of personal photos. Please note when we digitize photos provided from personal collections, the Archive reserves the right to keep a copy and to use it in projects that detail the history of TJC.
- Most items housed in the Archive may be viewed on site. Nothing may be checked out of the Archive, but a digitized version may be available upon request for some items. Copies are not to be used for commercial purposes without the written consent of Tyler Junior College.