Texas Folklore Society Joins Roadside Marker Grant Program to Recognize State’s Diverse Folklore

STEPHENVILLE, TEXAS – Thanks to a new partnership between the Texas Folklore Society and William G. Pomeroy Foundation, Texas communities can now highlight their stories, customs and traditions through a roadside marker grant program named Legends & Lore®.

Launched by the Pomeroy Foundation in 2015, the Legends & Lore grant program helps communities commemorate their local folklore and legends, and promote cultural tourism with roadside markers. The Texas Folklore Society, which collects, preserves, and shares the practices and customs of the people of Texas and the Southwest, has joined the grant program as a state partner of the Pomeroy Foundation. The Society will help vet grant applications and ensure the legitimacy of the folklore proposed for commemoration.

“The Texas Folklore Society is thrilled to partner with the Pomeroy Foundation on this program,” said Kristina Downs, Secretary/Editor and Executive Director of the Texas Folklore Society. “As a large and diverse state, Texas has an especially rich and varied folk culture. The Legends & Lore program will enable local communities to celebrate and showcase their traditions.”
The Pomeroy Foundation is a philanthropic organization based in Syracuse, N.Y. One of the Foundation’s main initiatives is to help people celebrate their community’s history by providing grants for roadside markers. Since 2005, the Foundation has awarded over 1,700 grants for markers and bronze plaques in 45 states.

“We are delighted to welcome the Texas Folklore Society among the Pomeroy Foundation’s incredible Legends & Lore partners in a growing number of states,” said Deryn Pomeroy, Trustee and Director of Strategic Initiatives at the Pomeroy Foundation. “This is an exciting opportunity to highlight the Lone Star State’s folklore and legends with roadside markers. We look forward to working with the Society to further recognize and put the spotlight on the diverse landscape of folk and traditional arts in Texas.”
More than 140 Legends & Lore marker grants have been awarded by the Pomeroy Foundation since the program’s inception. In addition to Texas, Legends & Lore grants are currently available in the following states: Alabama, Connecticut, Idaho, Louisiana, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Vermont and West Virginia. Prospective applicants must apply through a local 501(c)(3) organization such as a historical society, nonprofit academic institution, or a local, state, or federal government entity.

The current Legends & Lore grant application deadline is Monday, May 2. Legends & Lore grant funding includes the full cost of a marker, pole, and shipping. To review program guidelines and details about how to apply online, visit the Foundation’s website: https://www.wgpfoundation.org/history/legends-lore/
Two Legends & Lore grant rounds are held each year. The second Legends & Lore grant round in 2022 will open on Monday, Aug. 29. The deadline to submit a marker grant application during that round will be Monday, Oct. 17, 2022.

About the Texas Folklore Society
The Texas Folklore Society collects, preserves, and shares the practices and customs of the people of Texas and the Southwest. The Society is the second oldest folklore organization continually functioning in the United States–second only to the American Folklore Society founded in 1888. Chartered in 1909, the Society held its first meeting on the campus of the University of Texas in 1911. The Society has stimulated the recording and study of the rich folk culture of Texas and the Southwest, has attracted both laymen and scholars, and has distributed its publications throughout America and the world.

About the Pomeroy Foundation
The William G. Pomeroy Foundation® is committed to supporting the celebration and preservation of community history; and working to improve the probability of finding appropriate donor matches or other life-saving treatments for blood cancer patients. Established by Trustee Bill Pomeroy in 2005 to bring together his two greatest passions, the Pomeroy Foundation is a private, philanthropic organization located in Syracuse, N.Y. As the nation’s leading funder of historic roadside markers, the Pomeroy Foundation has awarded over 1,700 grants for markers and bronze plaques in 45 states. To learn more about the Pomeroy Foundation, visit wgpfoundation.org.