Texas

Capital: Austin

Population: 29,206,997 (Source: 2012 U.S. Census)

Major Cities: Houston, San Antonio, Dallas, Austin, Fort Worth, El Paso

Borders: New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mexico, Gulf of Mexico

Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $1,397,369 million (2012 U.S. Department of Commerce)

Key Industries:

Agriculture including cattle, sheep, goats, cotton, grains, and fishing

Oil, natural gas, petroleum products, cement, energy, chemicals, and tourism

How Texas got its name: The name Texas comes from the Caddo Native American word tejas which means friends.

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Texas State Symbols

State Nickname: Lone Star State

State Slogan: It's Like a Whole Other Country (this is used only in domestic advertising)

State Motto: Friendship

State flower: Bluebonnet

State bird: Mockingbird

State fish: Guadalupe bass

State tree: Pecan

State mammal: Armadillo, Texas Longhorn, Mexican free-tailed bat

State foods: Chili, Pecan, Jalapeno, Strudel, Tortilla chips and Salsa

Becoming a State

Date admitted: Monday, December 29, 1845

Number admitted: 28

Prior Name: Republic of Texas

Postal Abbreviation: TX

The Geography of Texas

Total Size: 261,797 sq. miles (source: 2003 Census)

Geographical Low Point: Gulf of Mexico at Sea Level (source: U.S. Geological Survey)

Geographical High Point: Guadalupe Peak at 8,749 feet, located in the county/subdivision of Culberson (source: U.S. Geological Survey)

Central Point: Located in McCulloch County approx. 15 miles northeast of Brady (source: U.S. Geological Survey)

Counties: 254 (source: National Association of Counties)

Bodies of Water: Gulf of Mexico, Rio Grande River, Pecos River, Red River, Colorado River, Brazos River, Toledo Bend Reservoir

Famous People

Drew Brees - Professional football player
Kelly Clarkson - Singer and American Idol winner
Dwight D. Eisenhower- The 34th President of the United States and WWII general
Selena Gomez - Actress and singer
Howard Hughes - Businessman and aviator
Lyndon B. Johnson - The 36th President of the United States
Beyonce Knowles - Singer and actress
Tom Landry - Legendary football coach
Steve Martin - Comedian and actor
Sandra Day O'Connor - First woman U.S. Supreme Court Justice
Adrian Peterson - Professional football player
Dan Rather - News Anchor
Kenny Rogers - Country music singer
Nolan Ryan - Professional baseball player
Babe Didrikson Zaharias - Track and field athlete

Fun Facts

The name Texas comes from the word 'tejas' meaning 'friends' or 'allies'.
Austin, Texas is called the 'Live Music Capital of the World'.
The King Ranch in Texas is bigger than the state of Rhode Island.
Bracken cave has the single largest concentration of mammals in the world with a population of over 20 million bats!
The name the Lone Star State comes from the single star on the Texas flag. It symbolized Texas' struggle for independence.
El Paso, Texas is closer to the border of California than it is to Dallas, Texas. That's how big Texas is!
Texas has been a member of six different nations including Spain, Mexico, France, the Republic of Texas, the Confederate States, and the USA.
Dr Pepper was invented in Waco, Tx.
The Dallas-Fort Worth area has a larger population than 39 US States.
Presidents Dwight D. Eisenhower and Lyndon B. Johnson were born in Texas.

Professional Sports Teams

Dallas Cowboys - NFL (football)
Dallas Mavericks - NBA (basketball)
Dallas Wings - WNBA (basketball)
Dallas Stars - NHL (hockey)
FC Dallas - MLS (soccer)
Houston Astros - MLB (baseball)
Houston Dynamo - MLS (soccer)
Houston Rockets - NBA (basketball)
Houston Texans - NFL (football)
San Antonio Spurs - NBA (basketball)
Texas Rangers - MLB (baseball)

Texas State History

Native Americans

Before Europeans arrived in the 1500s, Texas was the home to several Native American tribes. The Caddos lived in east Texas and were excellent farmers growing corn and sunflowers. The Karankawa people lived along the Gulf Coast of Texas. They were good at fishing and made dugout canoes for traveling. In the northwest lived the Comanche who were hunters and excellent horsemen. To the west and southwest were the Apache who were warlike and lived in wikiups or teepees.

The Six Flags of Texas by ThornEth

Europeans Arrive

In 1519, the Spanish arrived in Texas when Alonso Alvarez de Pineda mapped the coastline. Another Spanish explorer, Cabeza de Vaca, shipwrecked off the coast of Texas in 1528. He met the local Indians and lived there for seven years. Later, he wrote of gold which inspired the Spanish conquistadors to explore Texas including Hernando do Soto. They never found the gold, however.

Colonization

It wasn't until the late 1600s that the Europeans began to settle in Texas. First the French claimed the land when Robert de La Salle arrived and established Fort St. Louis in 1685. The French didn't last long in Texas, however, and soon the Spanish took over.

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The Spanish settled Texas by establishing Catholic missions. They built a number of missions across Texas where they would teach the Native Americans about Christianity. In 1718, San Antonio was established with the building of the Mission San Antonio de Valero. The mission would later be known as the Alamo.

The Alamo by Ellabell14

Republic of Mexico

Texas was a part of Mexico when Mexico gained its independence from Spain in 1821. In 1825, American Stephen F. Austin established a colony in Texas. He arrived with around 300 families and settled the land with the approval of the Mexican government. The colony grew rapidly, but also they began to have many disagreements with the Mexican government.

Republic of Texas

The tensions between the Texans and Mexico turned to battle in 1835 at the Battle of Gonzales. Fighting broke out throughout Texas and the Texas Revolution began. At the Battle of the Alamo in 1836, 180 Texans held off 4,000 Mexican soldiers for thirteen days before being killed. Despite the defeat, the Texans declared their independence and formed the Republic of Texas on March 2, 1836. Then, led by General Sam Houston, the Texans defeated the Mexicans at the Battle of San Jacinto.

Becoming a State

Although the Texans had declared independence, they were still very vulnerable to attacks from Mexico. Some people wanted to join the United States while others wanted to remain independent. Sam Houston convinced the Texan leaders that joining the United States would offer Texas protection from Mexico as well as new trade partners. On December 29, 1845 Texas was admitted as the 28th state.

Mexican-American War

When the U.S. admitted Texas as a state, this sparked a war between the U.S. and Mexico called the Mexican-American War. After a year and a half of fighting from 1846 to 1848, General Zachary Taylor led the U.S. to victory over Mexico. The war ended with the Treaty of Guadalupe-Hidalgo in 1848.

Civil War

In 1861, when the Civil War began, Texas seceded from the Union and joined the Confederacy. There was little actual fighting during the war in the state of Texas. After the war was lost, the slaves in Texas did not find out until a month later on June 19, 1865. This day is still celebrated today as Juneteenth. Texas was readmitted into the Union in 1870.

What does the "six flags over Texas" mean?

In the history of Texas there have been six nations, or flags, that have ruled the land including Spain, France, Mexico, Republic of Texas, United States, and the Confederacy.

Dallas skyline by Pwu2005

Timeline

1519 - Spanish explorer Alonso Alvarez de Pineda maps the coastline of Texas.
1528 - Cabeza de Vaca is shipwrecked off the coast of Texas.
1685 - The French establish Fort St. Louis and lay claim to Texas.
1718 - San Antonio is established as a Spanish mission.
1821 - Mexico gains independence from Spain. Texas is a part of Mexico.
1825 - Stephen F. Austin founds a colony of settlers.
1836 - The Battle of the Alamo occurs. The independent Republic of Texas is declared.
1845 - The U.S. Congress admits Texas as the 28th state.
1846 to 1848 - The Mexican-American War is fought over the borders between Texas and Mexico.
1861 - Texas secedes from the Union and joins the Confederacy.
1870 - Texas is readmitted to the Union.
1900 - Galveston is hit by a hurricane killing thousands of people.
1901 - Oil is discovered and the oil boom begins.
1963 - President John F. Kennedy is assassinated in Dallas.

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