While Austin is the Live Music Capital of the World, its big sister, Houston, is the historic heart of Texas music. For decades, amateur blues and jazz musicians went to Houston to make it big, and established...
Houston, that huge yet friendly city on the Gulf Coast, isn’t exactly known looking in the rearview mirror. In fact, history can be a tough sell even to native Houstonians (yes, they exist). Tristan Smith is trying...
Sandra Lord has been giving guided tours of Houston for so long she is almost a historic landmark herself. Her expertise on Houston’s famed Downtown tunnels have earned her the title “Tunnel Lady.” Her first book “Ghosts...
Although President Abraham Lincoln had issued a preliminary Emancipation Proclamation on September 22, 1862 (after the Battle of Antietam), and the final proclamation on January 1, 1863 (the same day as the Battle of Galveston), they actually had a minimal immediate impact on the lives of most of the millions of the nation’s enslaved African Americans, especially the slaves in Texas.
On September 22, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation. When it was issued on January 1, 1863, it effectively abolished slavery, freeing over three million enslaved African Americans. Sadly, word of it reached Texas nearly...
Houston, Texas, that sprawling, noisy, ambitious city on the Gulf Coast has had some epic rallies since its founding in 1836. But as big as Houston is, it’s not surprising that the community hasn’t settled on a...
Texas music comes from all corners of the Lone Star State, from singing cowboys, and in German immigrant dance halls, to Mexican balladeers and laboring field hands. And along the Gulf Coast, Texas music has produced countless...
West Texas is tough. With its countless cowboy and Indian tales, rocky, dusty West Texas is the most Texan setting, inspiring the imaginations of authors, filmmakers, and even playground adventurers. Dozens of outlaws, gunslingers, Rangers, desperadoes, and...
Do you know the real story behind the Yellow Rose of Texas? Certainly, you’ve heard the catchy song, but, due to the salacious nature of the tale, it’s not told to Texas children with the same detail...
Remember the Alamo! Remember Gonzales? Well, maybe not. Texans sure do love their rich, shared history, and they especially love reminding non-Texans that their beloved state was once its own nation, the Republic of Texas. Every Texan...
