TSHA Settlement + BB-35’s Fate
Happy Sunday, y’all! We have some updates to kick off the final week of August. They have nothing in common other than they’re both related to Texas history and they’re both good news.
The lawsuit filed in May by Mr. J.P. Bryan, Executive Director of the Texas State Historical Association, to restore bylaws-mandated balance to the board was to go to trial on September 11, 2023.
The parties went to mediation in Houston on August 23 and, after a full day of negotiations, came to a settlement. While the full terms of the settlement have not yet been released, here’s what we know:
Nancy Baker Jones, the board president who called a meeting to have the academic-leaning board terminate the position of Executive Director, agreed to resign from the board. Another academic board member, Stephanie Cole, will also resign.
Justice Ken Wise, next in line to serve as president, will assume that role and finish Jones’s term. Since committee appointments come from the TSHA president, we assume Wise will be tasked with examining the appointments of his predecessor and seeking balance there, too.
The two board slots created by the resignations, with a third that’s been sitting vacant, will be filled by non-academics to achieve equilibrium. Who will select the new board members and how they will be approved is murky at this point but we’ll keep you posted.
For now, this looks like an example of the process working.
A year ago, our own battleship, BB-35, was moved from her La Porte home to dry dock in Galveston for much-needed repairs. A question mark has lingered over where she’d go after her makeover.
Reports out of Galveston indicate that she’ll remain there. A preliminary agreement with Landry’s may land her at Pier 21 if it is finalized. If that comes to pass, the Battleship Texas Foundation will sign a lease with the Port of Galveston and our dreadnought will set up housekeeping.
The Foundation will be responsible for her maintenance, so a high traffic location where she receives plenty of visitors will go a long way to assure funds for her maintenance. Of all the candidate cities, Galveston was our pick.
