If you’re a barbeque lover and ask someone in the United States where you can get a good one, there’s no doubt that they will say that it’s the second-largest state in America, famously known as The Lone Star State — Texas!
However, aside from its world-famous barbeques, this so-called Lone Star State has a unique and captivating history to boast about. Let’s take a break from money talks and dive a bit deeper into the intriguing rich history of Texas that you might not have known otherwise.
1. The Lone Star State Flag
Texas’ nickname “The Lone Star State” was taken from its state flag, which appeared on the flag of the Republic of Texas back in 1838. From 1846 to 1945, Texas was an independent country, and the flag was accepted as the republic national’s banner from 1839. Six years later, Texas was declared the 28th state of the United States, and its national flag was adopted as the state flag.
The Texas government can be a bit strict and taut when it comes to flags. They have set rules and regulations that are still strictly followed up to this day. For instance, the Texas state flag should never be used as drapery or bedding, it must never trail in the water, and the list goes on.
2. The Deadliest Natural Disaster
The Great Galveston Storm remains the deadliest and worst natural disaster in the history of the United States.
Since weather forecasting was still primitive back then, people depended on spotty reports from the ships in the Gulf of Mexico. Ashore the night of 1900, the hurricane storm was expected to come with an estimated strength of category 4. They knew it was big but didn’t think it was monstrous.
The hurricane storm killed 6,000 to 12,000 people on Galveston Island, as well as on the mainland, after dominating the coastline with 8-12 feet of raging water.
Aside from human deaths, Texas’ most advanced city was nearly destroyed back then. It also took tall on the life of about 7,000 buildings in Galveston, including 3,636 residences.
Moreover, it has crowded out about 10,000 individuals in the city, with a population of fewer than 38,000 people, putting an end to Galveston’s so-called golden age. The investors relocated to Houston with the fear of having another storm take place.
3. Presidents
Former Presidents, George H.W. Bush and his son George W. Bush, weren’t born in Texas. The older George was born in Milton, Massachusetts, while his son was born in New Haven, Connecticut. Although they aren’t really from Texas, they lived in the state for a very long time, perhaps enough to say that they have spent nearly half of their life there.
4. The Birthplace of Dr. Pepper
In 1885, a young pharmacist named Charles Alderton thought of experimenting with a drink that has unusual flavors while experimenting with various mixtures of carbonated sodas and fruit syrups. Alderton’s boss, Wade Morrison, takes an interest in his unique concoction so much to the point that he named it Dr. Pepper.
Dr. Pepper was introduced to more than 20 million people during the World’s Fair Exposition in 1904 in St. Louis. Up-to-date, Dr. Pepper Museum still stands in Waco, Texas.
5. Home to the World’s Largest Belt Buckle
When it comes to belt buckles, nothing probably compares to the Montana silversmiths. The world’s largest belt buckle manufacturer is based in Montana, and the first-ever huge belt buckle was designed to look like a store-bought as per the Guinness World of Records.
The measure of the belt buckle was 3.2 by 4.43 meters. If we measure that into feet, that would be six feet and six inches tall and 14 feet and 6.4 inches wide. Silversmiths took more than six months to complete the accomplishment.
6. What’s up, Doc?
“What’s up, Doc?” — if you know this line, your childhood is probably awesome! This expression gained widespread popularity because of the famous cartoon called Looney Tunes, which started in the 1940s. Bugs Bunny, one of the cartoon’s characters, uses this catchphrase.
The famous line was coined by Looney Tunes animator Tex Avery, who finished his high school in North Dallas, Texas. According to Avery, he didn’t expect it to catch viewers’ attention because it was just a typical, frequent saying in his hometown.
7. A Personal Power Grid
There are only three electric grids in the lower 48 states— the Eastern Interconnection, Western Interconnection, and Texas. Yes, Texas has its own grid to be dealing with the Federal government, and this modern outlet protects one of Texas’ freedom tendencies.
Texas’ personal power grid is known as Ercot, which the Electric Reliability Council of Texas manages. This power grid doesn’t cover the entire state of Texas, El Paso, and other upper panhandles on the east side of Texas. Some places are connected on a different grid.
The split of grids in Northern Texas and Southern Texas aimed to fend off Federal authorities’ reach. In 1935, former president Franklin Roosevelt signed the Federal Power Act, charging the Federal Power Commission with controlling interstate energy sales.
Texas utilities managed to evade being subjected to Federal regulations by not crossing state lines.
8. Mystery Flag Designer
If you have visited a popular national theme park or if you’re a fan of Texas history, you must have known that the state has a total of six flags. Of course, there’s Texas’ “Lone Flag,” which is the most popular among the six.
One interesting thing about the famous Lone Flag is that no one knows who was behind its design. There has been a long debate over it, but historians cannot prove who was the genius flag architect since references aren’t complete.
9. Texas Pecan Pie
The world’s largest pecan pie was made in Texas by the El Paso Diablos Baseball Club in 1999. The gigantic size of the monstrous pecan pie is about 50 feet in diameter, weighing 21 tons.
Texas surely has a thing for Herculean-sized things since, aside from the biggest pecan pie, people can find the world’s largest bowl of salsa here. In 2010, during the annual tomato fest, Bob Bloomer of Glutton for Punishment made a massive 500 gallons of the dip.
9. Bat-central
Bats love partying during summer at Bracken Cave in San Antonio, Texas, within the Southern Comel country. Studies say that an estimated 20 million Mexican free-tailed bats are going to the cave from March to October, making the place the holder of the world’s largest known concentration of animals.
The bats stay at the 100-foot crescent-shaped crevice, which is the bottom part of a sinkhole produced when the top of the cave falls. Bat Conservation International holds the cave in their possession. It also takes into custody about 616 hectares of surrounding areas, which now shelter native vegetation and serve as a home to diverse animals.
10. Unsurping Europe
If Texas was a country, it would be way more humongous than any country in Europe. It would probably be the 40th largest country in the world if it weren’t a state as it is now.
The King Ranch, which is the largest ranch in Texas and the entire United States, is bigger than the entire state of Rhode Island.
