Portal:Texas

Texas
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Texas (/ˈtɛksəs/ ^ⓘ TEK-səss, locally also /ˈtɛksɪz/ TEK-siz; Spanish: Texas or Tejas, pronounced [ˈtexas]) is the most populous state in the South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the west, and an international border with the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the south and southwest. Texas has a coastline on the Gulf of Mexico to the southeast. Covering 268,596 square miles (695,660 km²), and with over 31 million residents as of 2024, it is the second-largest state by both area and population. Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State for its former status as an independent republic.

Spain was the first European country to claim and control Texas. Following a short-lived colony controlled by France, Mexico controlled the land until 1836 when Texas won its independence, becoming the Republic of Texas. In 1845, Texas joined the United States of America as the 28th state. The state's annexation set off a chain of events that led to the Mexican–American War in 1846. Following victory by the United States, Texas remained a slave state until the American Civil War, when it declared its secession from the Union in early 1861 before officially joining the Confederate States of America on March 2. After the Civil War and the restoration of its representation in the federal government, Texas entered a long period of economic stagnation.

Historically, five major industries shaped the Texas economy prior to World War II: cattle, bison, cotton, timber, and oil. Before and after the Civil War, the cattle industry—which Texas came to dominate—was a major economic driver and created the traditional image of the Texas cowboy. In the later 19th century, cotton and lumber grew to be major industries as the cattle industry became less lucrative. Ultimately, the discovery of major petroleum deposits (Spindletop in particular) initiated an economic boom that became the driving force behind the economy for much of the 20th century. Texas developed a diversified economy and high tech industry during the mid-20th century. As of 2022^[update], it has the most Fortune 500 company headquarters (53) in the United States. With a growing base of industry, the state leads in many industries, including tourism, agriculture, petrochemicals, energy, computers and electronics, aerospace, and biomedical sciences. Texas has led the U.S. in state export revenue since 2002 and has the second-highest gross state product. (Full article...)

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Postcard view of Beach Boulevard and the Hotel Galvez, early 1940s

The Free State of Galveston (sometimes referred to as the Republic of Galveston Island) was a satirical name given to the coastal city of Galveston in the U.S. state of Texas during the early-to-mid-20th century. Today, the term is sometimes used to describe the culture and history of that era.

During the Roaring Twenties, Galveston Island emerged as a popular resort town, attracting celebrities from around the country. Gambling, illegal liquor, and other vice-oriented businesses were a major part of tourism. The "Free State" moniker embodied a belief held by many locals that Galveston was beyond what they perceived were repressive mores and laws of Texas and the United States. Two major figures of the era were the businessmen, power brokers and crime bosses Sam and Rosario Maceo, who ran the chief casinos and clubs on the island and were heavily involved in local politics and the tourism industry. The success of vice on the island, despite being illegal, was enabled by lax attitudes in society and in government, both on the island and in the county. In one of the more famous examples of this, a state committee, investigating gambling at the fabled Balinese Room, was told by the local sheriff that he had not raided the establishment because it was a "private club" and because he was not a "member". (Full article...)

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Ima Hogg (July 10, 1882 – August 19, 1975), known as "The First Lady of Texas", was an American society leader, philanthropist, mental health advocate, patron and collector of the arts, and one of the most respected women in Texas during the 20th century. Hogg was an avid art collector, and owned works by Picasso, Klee, and Matisse, among others. Hogg donated hundreds of pieces of artwork to Houston's Museum of Fine Arts and served on a committee to plan the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. An enthusiastic collector of early American antiques, she also served on a committee tasked with locating historical furniture for the White House. She restored and refurbished several properties, including the Varner plantation and Bayou Bend, which she later donated to Texas arts and historical institutions who maintain the facilities and their collections today. Hogg received numerous awards and honors, including the Louise E. du Pont Crowninshield Award from the National Trust for Historic Preservation, the Santa Rita Award from the University of Texas System, and an honorary doctorate in fine arts from Southwestern University.

Hogg was the daughter of Sarah Ann "Sallie" Stinson and James Stephen "Big Jim" Hogg, later attorney general and governor of the state. Ima Hogg's first name was taken from The Fate of Marvin, an epic poem written by her uncle Thomas Hogg. She endeavored to downplay her unusual name by signing her first name illegibly and having her stationery printed with "I. Hogg" or "Miss Hogg". Although it was rumored that Hogg had a sister or sisters, whose names were suggested to be "Hoosa Hogg", "Ura Hogg" or "Wera Hogg", she had only brothers. Hogg's father left public office in 1895, and soon after, her mother was diagnosed with tuberculosis. When Sarah died later that year, Jim Hogg's widowed elder sister moved to Austin to care for the Hogg children. Between 1899 and 1901, Hogg attended the University of Texas at Austin; she then moved to New York City to study piano and music theory for two years. After her father's death in 1906, she traveled to Europe and spent two years studying music under Xaver Scharwenka in Vienna. When she returned to Texas, she established and managed the Houston Symphony Orchestra and served as president of the Symphony Society. (Full article...)

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State symbols

Flower	Bluebonnet
Motto	Friendship
Nickname	The Lone Star State
Tree	Pecan
Dog	Blue Lacy
Bird	Mockingbird
Fish	Guadalupe bass
Flying Mammal	Mexican free-tailed bat
Reptile	Texas Horned Lizard

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Credit: John Trost
The Lucas Gusher at Spindletop.

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Man-made replacement of the original waterfall in Lucy Park

Wichita Falls (/ˈwɪtʃɪtɑː/ WITCH-ih-tah) is a city in and the county seat of Wichita County, Texas, United States. It is the principal city of the Wichita Falls metropolitan statistical area, which encompasses all of Archer, Clay, and Wichita Counties. According to the 2020 census, it had a population of 102,316, making it the 43rd-most populous city in Texas.

The city was named, in 1876, for a waterfall on the Wichita River, which was destroyed due to flooding in 1886. (Full article...)

List of cities
Houston Dallas Marshall, Texas Austin, Texas San Antonio Amarillo, Texas Arlington, Texas Beaumont, Texas Corpus Christi, Texas El Paso, Texas Fort Worth, Texas Midland, Texas Waco, Texas Tyler, Texas Lubbock, Texas Irving, Texas Sugar Land, Texas San Angelo, Texas Brownsville, Texas Grand Prairie, Texas Abilene, Texas Richardson, Texas McAllen, Texas Denton, Texas

General images

The following are images from various Texas-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1The Republic of Texas. The present-day outlines of the U.S. states (white lines) are superimposed on the boundaries of 1836–1845. (from History of Texas)
Image 2The U.S. and Texas flags at the Texas State Capitol. (from History of Texas)
Image 3The French flag of the Bourbons (from History of Texas)
Image 4Texas in 1718, Guillaume de L'Isle map, approximate state area highlighted, northern boundary was indefinite. (from History of Texas)
Image 5Spanish Texas in 1794 (from History of Texas)
Image 6René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle founded the French colony in Texas. (from History of Texas)
Image 7Mission Concepcion is one of the San Antonio missions which is part of a National Historic Landmark. (from History of Texas)
Image 8Spanish missions within the boundaries of what is now the state of Texas. (from History of Texas)
Image 9A factory worker in Fort Worth, Texas, 1942 (from History of Texas)
Image 10The Spanish flag of Burgundy. (from History of Texas)
Image 11Territories of some Native American tribes in Texas ~1500CE (from History of Texas)
Image 12First Day of Passenger Service, Dallas & Sherman Interurban Railroad 1908 (from History of Texas)
Image 13President John F. Kennedy in the presidential limousine, minutes before his assassination (from History of Texas)
Image 14Comancheria before 1850. (from History of Texas)
Image 151913 cotton harvest in East Texas (from History of Texas)
Image 16Big Tex, the mascot of the State Fair of Texas since 1952 (from Culture of Texas)
Image 17Captain Charles A. May's squadron of the 2d Dragoons slashes through the Mexican Army lines. Resaca de la Palma, Texas, May 1846 (from History of Texas)
Image 18Sam Houston served as the first and third president of the Republic of Texas and seventh governor of Texas. (from History of Texas)
Image 19The "Lone Star" Belle, postcard, around 1908. (from Culture of Texas)
Image 20McAllen (from List of Texas metropolitan areas)
Image 21Stephen F. Austin, known as the "Father of Texas." (from History of Texas)
Image 22The Viceroyalty of New Spain in 1819 (from History of Texas)
Image 23Mexican Texas in 1833 (from History of Texas)
Image 24Boom periods of the four major industries that built the early Texas economy. (from History of Texas)
Image 25The Praetorian Building in Dallas, completed 1909, was the first skyscraper west of the Mississippi and the tallest in Texas. (from History of Texas)
Image 26The Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad --the "Katy"--was the first railroad to enter Texas from the north (from History of Texas)
Image 27Company D, Texas Rangers, at Realitos in 1887 (from History of Texas)
Image 28French Texas in 1685 consisted of Fort St. Louis on Matagorda Bay. (from History of Texas)
Image 29Austin (from List of Texas metropolitan areas)