So the Road to Texanacity is progressing...ever so slowly. It has been slowed down by Hurricane Ike and the birth of my first child (who is currently gurgling next to me an will be crying in about 15 minutes for a bottle). I am proud to be the father of a Texan child. This child will be able to brag that he has true Texancious blood. His family has been in Texas since the 1700s during the initial Spanish missions. Also, if you go up the family tree and take a right, you will find relatives who fought (and one died) in the Alamo...for both sides. Needless to say, this Texanacious blood did not come from my end of the family tree, but I am working on it.
As you can probably tell, I have not personally done everything on 'The Road to Texanacity', but I continue to check-off boxes. I appreciate any feedback on the previous postings and on future postings. I enjoy feedback like 'you should include x, y, or z' in the Road to Texanacity, but I would temper any requests with the idea that it is difficult to find a good balance for each of these ideas. My goal is to find certain Texanacious 'experiences' that can be broad enough to be reasonable for most people, but still specific enough to provide a meaningful experience.
On another note, the days of 'Texanacity' as a Googlewhack (only one hit on google.com) have come to an end. There are currently 4 hits if you seach 'Texanacity'. I am also sad that if you do that search, it does not ask "Do you mean 'toxicity'?" anymore. I just thought that was funny. Well, I am glad that there are three other sites that have somehow confused google enough to add them to the search (because God knows there are not many people reading this darned thing...which I am totally cool with).
Okay, now I am ending a lot of the posts with questions or comments. Here are some of the answers if you cared:
#4- Flying Tigers were lead by Claire Lee Chennault, who was born in Commerce, TX.
#7- 9 Flags over Nacogdoches- The Flags were the French, Spanish, Magee-Gutierrez, Dr. James Long, Mexican, Fredonia Rebellion, Lone Star, Confederate Stars & Bars and United States of America. As you can see, Nacogdoches has an independent spirit.
#8- Naming the 46 National Historic Landmarks would be very difficult. How about you check them out at this website and do a search for the state of Texas: http://tps.cr.nps.gov/nhl
#14- El Paso has 84% sunny days. Not only sunny days but the Boot Capital of the World...who wouldn't want to live there?
#15- High School football game with highest attendance- 49,953 Plano vs Port Neches-Groves in 1977 at Texas Stadium. (State Championship Game)
#16- The Peach State (Georgia) has the second most courthouses by default because they have the second most counties.
Until the next Texanacious posting...Enjoy Texas.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Point #16- Texas Courthouses
To obtain this point: You must visit a local county courthouse AND one on the following list of beautiful small town courthouses:
- Waxahachie (Ellis County)
- Gatesville (Coryell)
- Decatur (Wise)
- Gonzales (Gonzales)
- Albany (Shackleford)
- Lockhart (Caldwell)
This list was obtained from the website Old Texas Friends that polled people who have been to all of the courthouses in Texas which one was the best. (http://oldtexasfriends.com)
Caveat #1- Heck, if you see a really interesting courthouse and have a good experience visiting one, I guess that would count, too.
A Texanacious friend of mine once told me that in Europe the most important building in a town was the church and in Texas it was the courthouse. His theory was the law and order was essential in small towns throughout Texas. Maybe that's true, but the Texas courthouse definitely symbolize many things Texanacious.
The location for the county seat was often violently debated and an economic boom to any town that received the designation. There are roughly 250 courthouses throughout Texas and many were build before 1940. They are a source of beautiful architecture of varying degrees. There have been many books written about the history of the Texas courthouses and their history. Most of the histories are filled with local history, criminal justice, and scandal.
Enjoy Texas and did you know that Texas has more courthouses than any other state...by a lot. Can you guess which state comes in second?
- Waxahachie (Ellis County)
- Gatesville (Coryell)
- Decatur (Wise)
- Gonzales (Gonzales)
- Albany (Shackleford)
- Lockhart (Caldwell)
This list was obtained from the website Old Texas Friends that polled people who have been to all of the courthouses in Texas which one was the best. (http://oldtexasfriends.com)
Caveat #1- Heck, if you see a really interesting courthouse and have a good experience visiting one, I guess that would count, too.
A Texanacious friend of mine once told me that in Europe the most important building in a town was the church and in Texas it was the courthouse. His theory was the law and order was essential in small towns throughout Texas. Maybe that's true, but the Texas courthouse definitely symbolize many things Texanacious.
The location for the county seat was often violently debated and an economic boom to any town that received the designation. There are roughly 250 courthouses throughout Texas and many were build before 1940. They are a source of beautiful architecture of varying degrees. There have been many books written about the history of the Texas courthouses and their history. Most of the histories are filled with local history, criminal justice, and scandal.
Enjoy Texas and did you know that Texas has more courthouses than any other state...by a lot. Can you guess which state comes in second?
Point #15- Texas High School Football
To obtain this point: You must experience Texas High School football. This can be done in several ways:
- You may go to a game featuring Permian High School in Odessa, TX. The Permian Panthers were the inspiration for Friday Night Lights (the book, 2004 movie, and now NBC TV show).
- You may go to a game featuring a Texas football team ranked in the USA Today Top 25 in the nation. Texas often has Top 25 national teams and as of this writing, there are 3 Texas teams in the National Top 25.
- You may go to a State Championship game in any of the divisions (preferably 5A or 4A).
Texas high school football is all about passion. Watching the hopes and desires of small towns or big city high schools rest on the backs of 17-18 year old athletes definitely creates a roller-coaster ride. Anyone from Texas can attest to the ferocity that is associated with high school football.
I would recommend going to one of the games and trying to soak up the atmosphere...the bands, cheerleaders, dance teams, popcorn, flirting in the stands, parents wearing team paraphernalia (buttons, jerseys, hats), proud fathers, medical staff, coaches wearing head sets and yelling, thrown clipboards, teachers trying to control the student body, push-ups after touchdowns, local sheriffs secretly (or not so secretly) cheering for the hometown team, and the occasional storming of the field after a big victory. Oh yeah, I guess you could watch the game too.
Enjoy Texas and did you know that the game featuring Southlake Carroll and Euless Trinity drew over 45,000 fans at Texas Stadium in 2006, but it was not the highest attendance to see a Texas high school football game. Can you name the game that had the highest attendance?
- You may go to a game featuring Permian High School in Odessa, TX. The Permian Panthers were the inspiration for Friday Night Lights (the book, 2004 movie, and now NBC TV show).
- You may go to a game featuring a Texas football team ranked in the USA Today Top 25 in the nation. Texas often has Top 25 national teams and as of this writing, there are 3 Texas teams in the National Top 25.
- You may go to a State Championship game in any of the divisions (preferably 5A or 4A).
Texas high school football is all about passion. Watching the hopes and desires of small towns or big city high schools rest on the backs of 17-18 year old athletes definitely creates a roller-coaster ride. Anyone from Texas can attest to the ferocity that is associated with high school football.
I would recommend going to one of the games and trying to soak up the atmosphere...the bands, cheerleaders, dance teams, popcorn, flirting in the stands, parents wearing team paraphernalia (buttons, jerseys, hats), proud fathers, medical staff, coaches wearing head sets and yelling, thrown clipboards, teachers trying to control the student body, push-ups after touchdowns, local sheriffs secretly (or not so secretly) cheering for the hometown team, and the occasional storming of the field after a big victory. Oh yeah, I guess you could watch the game too.
Enjoy Texas and did you know that the game featuring Southlake Carroll and Euless Trinity drew over 45,000 fans at Texas Stadium in 2006, but it was not the highest attendance to see a Texas high school football game. Can you name the game that had the highest attendance?
Point #14- Experience Texas Weather Extremes
To obtain this point: You must experience the weather extremes in Texas.
When I arrived in Texas I heard that if you wanted to have a change in weather that you should just wait 5 minutes. Again, this is a little of an exaggeration, but Texas definitely has its fair share of weather extremes.
As always, a couple facts:
- Hottest weather in Texas- 120°F Monahans, Ward County, June 28, 1994 and Seymour, Baylor County, August 12, 1936
-Coldest weather- -23°F Seminole, Gaines County, February 8, 1933 and -23°F Tulia, Swisher County, February 12, 1899
- In 1962 there was also a whopping 121 days over 100 degrees in Presidio County in 1962...now that's hot!
- The 1900 Hurricane in Galveston had 6000-8000 deaths and was the deadliest natural disaster to strike the United States.
- There were 232 tornadoes in 1967.
- A hail storm in Dallas in 1995 had 1.2 billion dollars of damage.
- 153 days below freezing in Dalhart in 1969-1970.
Most of this information from: http://www.srh.noaa.gov/fwd/CLIMO/textremes.html
So I have to admit, that I am biased with this point because Hurricane Ike has just ravaged through the Gulf Coast and up central Texas. Anyone who experienced Hurricane Ike...Check this one off. There are also yearly blizzards, heat waves, tornadoes, floods, or wild fires that would be sufficient. Good luck. Prepare for the worst and hope for the best...
Enjoy Texas and did you know that Amarillo is the windiest city in Texas with an average wind speed on 14.3 mph (It is also the second sunniest city in Texas with 74% sunny days). Can you guess the city with the highest percentage of sunny days?
When I arrived in Texas I heard that if you wanted to have a change in weather that you should just wait 5 minutes. Again, this is a little of an exaggeration, but Texas definitely has its fair share of weather extremes.
As always, a couple facts:
- Hottest weather in Texas- 120°F Monahans, Ward County, June 28, 1994 and Seymour, Baylor County, August 12, 1936
-Coldest weather- -23°F Seminole, Gaines County, February 8, 1933 and -23°F Tulia, Swisher County, February 12, 1899
- In 1962 there was also a whopping 121 days over 100 degrees in Presidio County in 1962...now that's hot!
- The 1900 Hurricane in Galveston had 6000-8000 deaths and was the deadliest natural disaster to strike the United States.
- There were 232 tornadoes in 1967.
- A hail storm in Dallas in 1995 had 1.2 billion dollars of damage.
- 153 days below freezing in Dalhart in 1969-1970.
Most of this information from: http://www.srh.noaa.gov/fwd/CLIMO/textremes.html
So I have to admit, that I am biased with this point because Hurricane Ike has just ravaged through the Gulf Coast and up central Texas. Anyone who experienced Hurricane Ike...Check this one off. There are also yearly blizzards, heat waves, tornadoes, floods, or wild fires that would be sufficient. Good luck. Prepare for the worst and hope for the best...
Enjoy Texas and did you know that Amarillo is the windiest city in Texas with an average wind speed on 14.3 mph (It is also the second sunniest city in Texas with 74% sunny days). Can you guess the city with the highest percentage of sunny days?
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