Located in South Central United States, Texas was the twenty-eighth state in the United States and was admitted on December 29, 1845. Texas is both the second largest and second most populous state in the country. Its state capital is Austin and the largest city, Houston. Texas' bordering states are Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico and Oklahoma, its bordering country is Mexico and its bordering body of water is the Gulf of Mexico. The main rivers in the state are Rio Grande, Red River and Brazos River. The state is associated with the image of the cowboy due to long history of the cattle industry. Even though Texas is considered part of America South, culturally and historically the term “six flags over Texas” show the multinational heritage of the state with former rulers including Spain, France, and Mexico. The state is also widely known as John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963, in the Texan city Dallas.
The state name, Texas came to being as the Caddo Indians of eastern Texas called their group of tribes the 'Tejas', meaning 'those who are friends'. The state is nicknamed 'The Lone Star State' which signifies it as an independent republic and as a legacy for the struggles for independence from Mexico. The Lone Star can also be found on the state flag and state seal. The state bird is the Mockingbird and the state flower is the Bluebonnet. The state flag, which is called the 'Lone Star Flag', was adopted in 1845. Its background features three colored bands. Horizontally are the colours white, representing purity and red, representing bravery and vertically is the colour blue, representing loyalty. In the middle of the blue band is a lone white star.
Prior to European arrival, many Native Americans inhabited the land, now known as Texas. There were also three major cultures which the natives were part of. These were the Pueblo, the Mississippian culture and the civilizations of Mesoamerica who were influenced by the Teotihuacans. The first European was the shipwrecked Spanish explorer Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca, arriving in 1528. However, the first Europeans to actually settle the land only arrived over one hundred years later in 1685, yet it took only five years until they surrendered to the hostie natives. In 1690, the Spaniards began to think that the French posed a threat to their new discovered land and by 1716 they began to construct several missions in East Texas. The first Spanish Civilian settlement, San Antonio was established in 1718. It didn't take long before the Spanish began to convert all the natives to Christianity and by the end of the 1700's only a few of the nomadic tribes had remained true to their own traditions. Following the 1821 Mexican War of Independence, Texas became part of the Mexican territory. The Mexican Texas State desired an increased population and therefore permitted immigrants from outside of Spain and Mexico, but by 1830, they prohibited continued immigration from the United States.
In 1832, the Texans began to side with the federalists against the Mexican government and drove all the Mexican soldiers out of Eastern Texas. Three years later, the Texas Revolution erupted with the Texans successfully defeated all Mexican troops in the region. However, after this they were left without clear governance for two months. The Mexicans decided to take advantage of this and planned a revolt against the Texans. When this news reached Texas, the newly elected Texan delegates to the Convention of 1836 quickly signed a Declaration of Independence on March 2, forming the Republic of Texas. The Mexicans however, continued the war but were eventually defeated by the Texans.
Texas' admission into the Union was slowed owing to opposition within the republic and in the United States. Eventually, when Texas was admitted into the Union, Mexico broke off all diplomatic relations with the U.S. Soon afterwards, the Mexican-American War took place due to American and Mexican dispute over Texas' boundaries. The U.S. were quite victorious during the war, however they only achieved the desired Texas boundaries when they offered Mexico $18,250,000.
In 1861, Texas joined the Confederate States. The state Governor, Sam Houston was quite supportive of the Unionists. Twice, President Lincoln offered him Union troops to keep him in office, however Houston refused. After refusing to swear an oath of allegiance to the Confederacy, Houston was removed from his position as governor. The Congress readmitted the state into the Union in 1870.
Texas leads the country in export revenue. In the early 1900s, oil discoveries initiated an economic boom in the state. Nowadays, the major industries in Texas are petroleum and natural gas, farming of cotton and livestock, steel, banking, insurance and tourism. The state is also a leader in agriculture, energy, computers, aerospace and electronics. The state's most valuable agricultural product is cattle, however the state also leads nationally in production of sheep and goat products. Texas is also a leader in the United States for its cotton production. Owing to its large amount of mineral resources, Texas leads the country in creating cement, crushed stone, lime, salt, sand and gravel.
The climate in Texas varies throughout the state. The Panhandle of the state has colder winters than North Texas, while the Gulf Coast has mild winters. Right through winter there is much snowfall in Texas however, some places receive more snow than others with snow rarely falling south of San Antonio or on the coast. Some of the states natural weather conditions include tornadoes hurricanes and tropical storms. In fact, Texas has had some of the deadliest hurricanes in the world.
Texas is home to 24.6 million Americans. They have the second largest population and land area of any state in the country. Two-thirds of all Texans live in a major metropolitan area such as Houston. Texas has the largest percentage of population that is involved with religious affiliation. The most followed religions are the Roman Catholic Church, the Southern Baptist Convention and the United Methodist Church. There are also any non-Christian believers in the state, including Jews, Muslims and Hindus.
Two of America's Presidents have hailed from Texas:
• Dwight David Eisenhower - he was the 34th US President, serving from 1953 to 1961
• Lyndon Baines Johnson - he was the 36th US President, serving from 1963 to 1969
There are many featured attractions in Texas including Buckhorn Saloon and Museum, Cathedral of Junk, Cascade Caverns, Texas Prison Museum and the Forbidden Gardens. Texas also has a large amount of outdoor recreation including mountain biking trails, hiking trails, fishing horse riding, hunting and Fort Clark Springs.
Source:
Wikipedia
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