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Texas |
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People
from the Alamo! |
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Stephen Fuller Austin (November 3, 1793 – December 27, 1836)
was an American-born empresario. Known as the "Father of Texas"
and the founder of Anglo Texas, he led the second and,
ultimately, the successful colonization of the region by
bringing 300 families from the United States to the region in
1825. |
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| Population of USA is
331,893,745 as of March, 2022. The population of
Texas is 29,527,941 as of July, 2022. (US Census Bureau) |
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| Capitol:
Austin |
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| Texas is a state in the
South Central Region of the United States.
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 southwest, and has a
coastline with the
Gulf of Mexico to the
southeast. |
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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 the fourth and fifth largest
metropolitan statistical areas in the
country, respectively. 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 (above to the right) and on the Texas state seal
(above to the right). The origin
of Texas's name is from the word táyshaʼ,
which means "friends" in the Caddo language. |
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| 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. |
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| The term " six flags over
Texas" refers to several nations that have
ruled over the territory.
Spain was the
first European country to claim and control
the area of Texas. France held a short-lived
colony. Mexico controlled the territory
until 1836 when Texas won its independence,
becoming an independent republic. In 1845,
Texas joined the union as the 28th state.
The state's annexation set off a chain of
events that led to the Mexican–American War
in 1846. A slave state before the American
Civil War, Texas declared its secession from
the U.S. in early 1861, and officially
joined the
Confederate States of America on
March 2 of the same year. After the Civil
War and the restoration of its
representation in the federal government,
Texas entered a long period of economic
stagnation. |
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| Historically four major
industries shaped the Texas economy prior to
World War II: cattle and bison, cotton,
timber, and oil. Before and after the U.S.
Civil War the cattle industry, which Texas
came to dominate, was a major economic
driver for the state, thus creating the
traditional image of the Texas cowboy. In
the later 19th century cotton and lumber
grew to be major industries as the cattle
industry became less lucrative. It was
ultimately, though, the discovery of major
petroleum deposits (Spindletop in
particular) that initiated an economic boom
which became the driving force behind the
economy for much of the 20th century. With
strong investments in universities, Texas
developed a diversified economy and high
tech industry in the mid-20th century. As of
2015, it is second on the list of the most
Fortune 500 companies with 54. With a
growing base of industry, the state leads in
many industries, including tourism,
agriculture, petrochemicals, energy,
computers and electronics, aerospace, and
biomedical sciences. Texas has led the U.S.
in state export revenue since 2002 and has
the second-highest gross state product. If
Texas were a sovereign state, it would have
the 10th largest economy in the world. |
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Six Flags Over Texas |
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Texas State
Capitol |
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| Hamilton Pool Sink Hole |
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| Texas Oil Well |
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| The Alamo -
San Antonio |
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| Big
Bend National Park |
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Rio Grande River
Big Bend National Park |
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| Fred Hartman Bridge
cross the
Houston Ship Channel |
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San Antonio Riverwalk |
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Natural Bridge Caverns, Comal County |
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| Beaches at South Padre
Island |
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