Category Archives: This Week in Texas History

Rangers’ Closest Call Came At The Capitol

Leave a reply

At the end of a lengthy public probe into charges of corruption and criminal misdeeds, the question Lone Star legislators faced on April 2, 1919 was whether to do away with the Texas Rangers altogether or to give the legendary lawmen one more chance to clean up their act.

This is the subject of “This Week in Texas HIstory” for Wednesday, April 2 through Tuesday, April 8.  If your local newspaper does not carry this longest running feature of its kind, you can read it each and every week with your very own private email subscription available on this web site.

Texas Women Fight Long and Hard For The Vote

Leave a reply

The 50-year struggle to win the vote for the female half of Texas finally bore fruit on Mar. 25, 1918 with the signing of the Primary Election Law by Gov. William P. Hobby.

Texas women had come a long, long way from the not-so-distant past when they were banned from the ballot box along with “children, idiots, lunatics, paupers and felony convicts.”  That is the subject of the newspaper column “This Week in Texas History” for Wednesday, March 19 through Tuesday, March 25.

Two-Sport Star Died a Hero on Iwo

Leave a reply

That’s the title of the “This Week in History” column for the week of Wednesday, March 5 through Tuesday, March 11, and it’s all about the Marine who is one of only two NFL football players and one of only two professional baseball players awarded the Medal of Honor.

Jack Lummus was an All-Southwest Conference end on the gridirion and the best centerfielder on the diamond for Baylor on the eve of the Second World War.  He played a little minor-league baseball and a full season with the football Giants before going off to fight the Japanese.

Pike Visited Texas After Discovering His Peak

Leave a reply

Lewis and Clark were already homeward bound in 1806, when Zeb Pike embarked on a secret mission to the Southwest.  His orders were to slip into New Mexico, analyze the economic potential of the thriving colony and pinpoint the weak spots in the Spanish defenses.

The rest of the ”This Week in Texas History” column for Wednesday, February 19 through Tuesday, February 25 makes for mighty interesting reading.  If you can’t read it in local newspaper, a private email subscription is available on this web site.

Houston Fought Toughest Battle With The Bottle

Leave a reply

On February 18, 1839, Sam Houston spoke at the first temperance meeting ever held in the town named for him but ducked out the back before taking the customary no-alcohol pledge.

The San Jacinto hero’s lifelong battle with the bottle is the subject of the “This Week in Texas History” column for Wednesday, February 12 through Tuesday, February 18.  If you missed it in your local paper, you can read it with your own private email subscription available at the “General Store” on this web site.

Young Howard Hughes Goes To Hollywood

Leave a reply

Before he built the “Spruce Goose” and bought up half of Las Vegas, Howard Hughes left Houston for Hollywood to make motion pictures.

The Texas tycoon in Tinsel Town is the subject of “This Week in Texas History” for Wednesday, January 29 through Tuesday, February 4.  Be sure to read this column in your local newspaper or with your very own private email subscription available on this web site.

Houdini The Subject of Texas History Column For the Week

Leave a reply

“Following a weeklong engagement at the Majestic Theater, a cheering crowd saw Harry Houdini, escape artist extraordinaire, off at the Dallas train station on January 22, 1916.”

That’s how “This Week in Texas History” starts for the week of Wednesday, January 22 through Tuesday, January 28.  Learn a lot you don’t know about the most famous performer of his generation as well as his highly successful visit to Dallas ninety-eight years ago.

1957 Sugar Bowl This Week’s Texas History Column

Leave a reply

Their 8-2 season record and national ranking earned the Bears of Baylor an invitation to the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day 1957.

Baylor faced heavily favored Tennessee, undefeated and untied champions of the Southeastern Conference.  To see how this historic clash turned out be sure to read the “This Week in Texas HIstory” column for Wednesday, January 1 through Tuesday, January 7.

The Last “This Week in Texas History” For 2013

Leave a reply

The subject of my Texas history column for the week of Wednesday, December 25 through Tuesday, December 31 is “affairs of honor” in early Texas.

Dueling was a nasty business southerners brought with them, and any real or imagined insult could result in crack-of-dawn combat.  Sam Houston refused to take dueling seriously and on a written invitation once jotted a note to his secretary:  “This is number twenty-four.  The angry gentleman must wait his turn.”

Mexican Invaders March Captives to Perote Prison

Leave a reply

When Mexico City came into view on December 5, 1842, five dozen exhausted and starving Texans dared to hope their three-month march was over at last. 

The poor wretches, who crowded into the rat-infested cells of infamous Perote prison, were the human trophies of a surprise raid on San Antonio.  The Mexicans might not be able to reclaim the land lost at San Jacinto, but they could still make life miserable for the winners.

So goes the story told in the Wednesday, December 4 through Tuesday, December 10 installment of “This Week in Texas HIstory.”  Be sure to read it in your local newspaper or with a private email subscription available on this web site.