francis lister, who was a railroad agent. it is written to his two sons. "dear boys." it is a letter basically describing what happened to him and his family during the storm. it goes into great detail about the water rising and the wind picking up and what happened to them through the night of september 8. it's basically letting the boys know they are ok. he had already sent them telegrams, but i guess he wanted to go into detail and let them know what happened. it is very poignant. the detail is very descriptive and really gives you a good idea of the horrors these people suffered. just to give you an idea of how horrible the night was we can read about the water rising and houses being moved off their

foundations, but mr. lister in his letter writes that he needed to send his wife and daughter off the island because he was afraid of the disease, and he was afraid of an epidemic. he writes, "will send mama and anna to palestine. the town will be visited by an epidemic. they are so terribly shocked that they must be taken away from here." that gives you idea of the trauma so may suffer during a hurricane. host: the rosenberg library is unique in that it has not only an archive and of the collection -- a book collection but also a museum. we have approximately 8000 objects in the collection,

including artwork, textiles, weaponry, glass, all sorts of wonderful things. well, recently, the smithsonian portrait gallery had an exhibit on the war of 1812 and borrowed this wonderful portrait of jeane la fete who had a base in galveston after the war of 1812. he came here about 1815. relations between la fete and the u.s. government soured. he and his brother pierre were hired on as informants for spain, which at the time, mexico was trying to gain independence from spain. so, he used galveston as a base of operations for not only the sort of spying but also his privateering endeavors as well. it's a unique piece. the provenance is interesting. a local family was building a mansion on broadway.

and when they tore down the old house and were laying the foundation for the new one, they discovered a number of confederate artifacts and this painting rolled up in a tent. the family took this as possible jean la fete painting. in the 1970's, the piece was donated to the library. however, it was speculation that led early folks to believe this was jean la fete. it has really caught fire, much like all the history with la fete, there is a lot of mythology that is difficult to disentangle from fact. a few experts have taken a look at this portrait and concluded it is most likely not la fete for a number of reasons, including the costume he's

wearing. the hat looks like it belongs more in the 1600's rather than the 1800's. the lack of an undershirt, very central for an early 19th century proper portrait. notice the way he's holding a dagger. that would be -- the dagger would be facing down. so, this is a very foreboding man. he is going to stab you in the back and when you are not looking or stab from up above. some folks have speculated that it might just be a fanciful, victorian interpretation of la fete. and another idea is that it might be the famed actor edwin booth, brother of john wilkes booth who came to galveston a few times. well, the next object i would like to show you is really fascinating and it ties in withh the revolutionary period in galveston and texas history.

these are a pair of dueling pistols that belonged to general sam houston. very ornate. they were never used for duels but a wonderful piece. they were given to sam houston by his friends in cincinnati. at the time of the revolution. many in ohio, and especially cincinnati, supported the cause of texas independence. those who chose to came down to fight. and the remaining people raised funds to send cannons here. two of them called the twin sisters came and were involved in the decisive battle of san jacinto which saw the texans win independence from mexico. this inscription says " general sam houston from your cincy friends, 1836."

host: what i would like for people to take away when they visit is a piece of history. so many people, or with a connection to galveston looking for a piece of family history or a connection. we play a very important role for galveston. we are the keeper of the history here. announcer: throughout the weekend, american history tv is featuring galveston, texas. our city tour staff traveled there to learn about its history. learn more about galveston and other stops on c-span's city tour at c-span.org/city tour. you're watching american history tv, all weekend, every weekend on c-span. join american history tv next saturday and sunday, march 14 and 15, for live coverage of a conference focusing on the closing weeks of the civil war in 1865.

topics include the battle of sailor's creek and the surrender and legacy of appomattox. live next saturday and sunday, march 14 and 15, at longwood university in virginia on american history tv on c-span 3. announcer: with live coverage of the u.s. house on c-span and the senate on c-span 2, here on c-span 3 we show you the most relevant congressional hearings and public affairs event. then on weekends, 3 he spentis th -- c-span 3 is the home to american history tv including the civil war's anniversary visiting battlefield. american artifacts, touring museums to discover what artifacts reveal about america's past. history bookshelf with the best-known american history writers. the presidency, looking at the policies and legacy of our nation's commanders in chief. lectures in history, with top college professors delving into

america's past. and our new series, real america featuring educational films from the 19 30's through the 1970's. c-span 3 created by the cable tv industry and funded by your local cable or satellite provider. watch us in hd, like us on facebook, on follow us on twitter. announcer: each week, american history tv's american artifacts visits museums and historic places. next, we travel about 15 miles northwest of washington dc to great falls 10 visitors center where we will take a boat ride to learn about the history of the chesapeake and ohio canal. '[[[horn blows] announcer: i would like to introduce myself. my name is cassandra. and i am a seasonal park ranger at the chesapeake and ohio canal. i think we are going