User:Delfeye/Texas Institute of Letters

The Texas Institute of Letters is a literary organization founded to promote Texas literature and recognize literary and cultural achievement. They were founded during the Texas Centennial Exposition in Dallas and met for the first time on November 9th, 1936. They meet annually at locations throughout the state. In 1939, the Institute awarded their first book award to J. Frank Dobie for Apache Gold and Yaqui Silver. In following years, they broadened their awards to include other literary styles and added a lifetime achievement award.

Since 1967, the Texas Institute of Letters and The University of Texas at Austin select two people to receive one of two yearly Dobie-Paisano fellowships, the Ralph A. Johnston Fellowship or the Jesse H. Jones Fellowship. A fellowship includes a stipend and the opportunity to live at J. Frank Dobie’s Paisano ranch just west of Austin in the Hill-Country for either four or six months.