IN 19TH CENTURY TEXAS, SENDING LETTERS was one of the key ways people stayed connected. To send letters, you need ink. Iron gall ink, a substance made from the tannic acids in oak galls and iron salts, was by far the most popular in the 1830s. Although many purchased their ink from the store, frontier settlers could turn to the natural world for ingredients and create their own iron gall or other types of ink, using berries, cloves, bark, and more.
Join us outside of the San Jacinto Monument as museum educators demonstrate the ink making process and share some real 19th century ink recipes.