Founded from a regional preservation effort begun in 1921, Panhandle–Plains Historical Museum became a major repository for the history, culture, and natural heritage of the Texas Panhandle and Plains. On the campus of West Texas A&M University in Canyon, it holds Texas’s largest history collection, with more than three million artifacts spanning pioneer life, agriculture, paleontology, geology, Native American art, petroleum history, and more. Its permanent home opened in 1933, and the museum expanded into a leading regional institution through notable exhibits, historic reconstructions, and later renovation. Since March 2025, however, safety concerns and funding pressures have left its future uncertain.