Bullock Texas State History Museum

Fronted by a bronze star and a soaring sunstone rotunda, this Austin museum tells the story of Texas across three floors of exhibits, from Indigenous peoples and Spanish missions to independence, oil, and space exploration. A centerpiece is the reconstructed hull of La Belle, a French ship wrecked off the Gulf Coast in 1686 and painstakingly excavated. The building sits near the University of Texas and includes an IMAX theater. Galleries balance grand narratives of statehood with the everyday lives of ranchers, migrants, and workers.