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Texas (/ˈtɛksəs/, also locally /ˈtɛksɪz/; Spanish: Texas, Tejas) is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 30 million residents in 2022, it is the second-largest U.S. state by both area (after Alaska) and population (after California). Texas shares borders with the states of Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the west, and the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the south and southwest; and has a coastline with the Gulf of Mexico to the southeast. Houston is the most populous city in Texas and the fourth-largest in the U.S., while San Antonio is the second most populous in the state and seventh-largest in the U.S. Dallas–Fort Worth and Greater Houston are, respectively, the fourth- and fifth-largest metropolitan statistical areas in the country. Other major cities include Austin, the second most populous state capital in the U.S., and El Paso. Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State for its former status as an independent republic, and as a reminder of the state's struggle for independence from Mexico. The Lone Star can be found on the Texas state flag and on the Texas state seal. The origin of Texas's name is from the Caddo word táyshaʼ meaning 'friends'. Due to its size and geologic features such as the Balcones Fault, Texas contains diverse landscapes common to both the U.S. Southern and the Southwestern regions. Although Texas is popularly associated with the U.S. southwestern deserts, less than ten percent of Texas's land area is desert. Most of the population centers are in areas of former prairies, grasslands, forests, and the coastline. Traveling from east to west, one can observe terrain that ranges from coastal swamps and piney woods, to rolling plains and rugged hills, and finally the desert and mountains of the Big Bend. (Full article...) Selected article
Jesse Washington was a seventeen-year-old African American farmhand who was lynched in the county seat of Waco, Texas, on May 15, 1916, in what became a well-known example of racist lynching. Washington was convicted of raping and murdering Lucy Fryer, the wife of his white employer in rural Robinson, Texas. He was chained by his neck and dragged out of the county court by observers. He was then paraded through the street, all while being stabbed and beaten, before being held down and castrated. He was then lynched in front of Waco's city hall. Over 10,000 spectators, including city officials and police, gathered to watch the attack. There was a celebratory atmosphere among whites at the spectacle of the murder, and many children attended during their lunch hour. Members of the mob cut off his fingers, and hung him over a bonfire after saturating him with coal oil. He was repeatedly lowered and raised over the fire for about two hours. After the fire was extinguished, his charred torso was dragged through the town. A professional photographer took pictures as the event unfolded, providing rare imagery of a lynching in progress. The pictures were printed and sold as postcards in Waco. (Full article...) Selected biographyJames Bowie (1796 - March 6, 1836), aka Jim Bowie, was a 19th century pioneer and soldier who took a prominent part in the Texas Revolution and was killed at the Battle of the Alamo. He was born in Kentucky, and spent most of his life in Louisiana before moving to Texas and joining in the revolution. Bowie is also known for the style of knife he carried, which came to be known as the "Bowie knife". Stories of his frontier spirit has made him one of the most colorful folk heroes of Texas history. During the period before the Texas Revolution, Bowie had all sorts of adventures, including his famous search for the silver mines of San Saba, which proved unsuccessful. Also during this time, he became embroiled in many fights and was known for his fiery temper. Texas news
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Texas topicsSelected imageSpotlight cityGrand Prairie is a city in Dallas County (USA), with a significant overlap into Tarrant County, and a minor overlap into Ellis County. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 127,427. Grand Prairie is located at 32°42′55″N 97°1′1″W / 32.71528°N 97.01694°W (32.715266, -97.016864). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 211.2 km² (81.5 mi²). The West Fork of the Trinity River and a major tributary, Johnson Creek, flow through Grand Prairie. Interstate highways 20 and 30 run east-west through the city, along with SH 303, SH 180, and SH 161, a future extension of the Dallas outerloop (President George Bush Turnpike). General imagesThe following are images from various Texas-related articles on Wikipedia.
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