The history of Texas has had an important effect on the history of the United States, and Texas heroes such as Davy Crockett, Sam Houston, and Robert E. Lee are also national heroes. Most of the major personalities and events of Texas from Cabeza de Vaca to Robert E. Lee are presented in this children's book consisting of thirteen stories that will appeal to readers of all ages. Originally published in 1901, it is appropriate for grades 4–7. Included in the book are stories about Cabeza de Vaca, Robert Cavelier de la Salle, Ellis P. Bean, Stephen F. Austin, Sam Houston, Davy Crockett, the Alamo, Goliad, San Jacinto, the Mexican War, Castle Peroté, Dick Dowling, and Robert E. Lee.

Texas History Stories

Children's Books

Littlejohn, E. G.

History

State House Press at The Texas Center–Schreiner University

Life of Billy Dixon is a compelling narrative of the "wild, free life" on the Great Plains frontier. Ride with Billy Dixon to a high point on the plains and look out over a nearly solid mass of buffalo that stretches in every direction as far as the eye can see. Stand with Billy Dixon at Adobe Walls, in the unsettled Texas Panhandle, as hundreds of Comanche, Kiowa, and Cheyenne warriors on horseback charge out of the pre-dawn darkness toward a few dozen buffalo hunters. Crouch down in desperation with Billy Dixon at the Buffalo Wallow Fight as he and a few wounded and dying men lie in a shallow depression on the plains surrounded by howling Indians. In the Life of Billy Dixon the Great Plains frontier is seen through the knowing eyes of a participant who lived that frontier experience and who fortunately left an accurate and engaging record for those who followed.

Life of Billy Dixon

Biographies & Memoirs

Dixon, Olive K.

Historical

The Sixth U.S. Cavalry had its birth at the outbreak of the Civil War with its first action at Yorktown, Virginia, in 1862. They fought in the Army of the Potomac under General Sheridan throughout the war. From 1865 to 1871 the regiment was stationed in Austin and Fort Richardson, Texas, acting as both a federal policing unit in the Reconstruction military government and as protectors against the Comanches along the frontier. After 1871 they moved into Kansas and the Indian Territory and in 1874 were under the command of Col. Nelson A. Miles in his operations against the Comanches, Cheyennes, and Kiowas. The regiment was then stationed in Arizona and New Mexico and spent the next ten years in operations against the Apaches. Their last action against the Indians was at Wounded Knee in 1890. Fighting did not come again until the short-lived Spanish-American war in 1898 where the unit was prominent in the battle of Santiago. The author was a 2nd Lieutenant when he joined the Sixth Cavalry in 1874 and remained on their rolls for his entire career. In 1900 he wrote this history of the unit and had it privately published in Baltimore. Unfortunately a large part of the edition was destroyed by fire, make the original book one of the scarcest and most expensive histories of a major military unit.

From Yorktown to Santiago: with the Sixth U. S. Cavalry

Carter Lt. Colonel, W. H.

Americas

Capt. John R. Hughes' exploits in tracking down horse thieves led not only to his earning the enmity of the Wild Bunch, the desperados led by Butch Cassidy, but also to his becoming a Texas Ranger. Originally published in 1942 with a new introduction by Mike Cox. Illustrations are by Texas native, Frank Anthony Stanush.

Border Boss: Captain John R. Hughes - Texas Ranger

Martin, Jack

This historic collection, revised and expanded, is the most complete and authoritative history of the women who have contributed to the life of the Lone Star State. A compendium of authentic and detailed biographies based on historical sources, here is a rich tapestry woven from the polychrome backgrounds and ethnicities of Texas' women. Theirs is a legacy of gentleness to greatness, and their names are legend in the honor roll of Texas—from Jane Long, "The Mother of Texas," to Ann Richards. Henrietta King's name adorns a historic Texas ranch; Lizzie Johnson, Texas' eccentric cattle queen and financial wizard, lived like a miser in her old age but left a fortune in legendary diamonds and real estate; Babe Zaharias became a sports legend. These women's stories are tales of ingenuity, spirit, and entrepreneurial skills cast against the background of Texas history. From the 19th to the 20th century, Texas women have created a story of lives well spent and talents explored. They rode the cattle trails, wrote the books, painted and sculpted, and helped to govern their state, creating a legacy of "firsts": Mary Austin Holley, first woman to write a book about her adopted state; Miriam Amanda Ferguson, first woman governor elected in her own right; Barbara Jordan, first black woman from the South to be elected to Congress. Women in Texas collects the stories of the lives of the women who helped to create and nourish the life and the legend of the Lone Star State.

Women in Texas

Crawford, Ann Fears

Ragsdale, Crystal Sasse

Community & Culture

For more than 150 years the Texas Rangers have blazed a trail across Texas history in their role as policemen for the state of Texas. In 1934, when C. L. Douglas wrote this popular account of the Rangers' achievements, there were few other histories of the organization. By vocation a journalist, Douglas devoted years of research to these historic lawmen with their aura of courage and resolve. Legendary feats from all the historical periods of the Rangers are brought back to life in Douglas's accounts. From the early days of the Republic and before the Civil War he writes of the battles of the vengeful Comanches against the relentless advance of the white frontiersman and their way of life. After the creation of the Frontier Battalion in the 1870s he narrates the heady exploits against the Mexican bandits and outlaw cattle rustlers. From the twentieth century we read of such exploits as those of Frank Hamer and his relentless pursuit of Bonnie and Clyde. The mystique of the Texas Rangers persists—the mystique of a remarkable cast of characters vividly brought to life by Douglas. Truly a different breed were these Gentlemen in the White Hats.

The Gentlemen in the White Hats: Dramatic Episodes in the History of the Texas Rangers

Douglas, C. L.

Robert Hall was a true Texian: a pioneer settler, Indian fighter, Texas Ranger, and veteran of three wars (the war for Texas Independence, the Mexican War, and the Civil War). He joined the Texas Army shortly after the Battle of San Jacinto, and married into the prominent King family of Gonzales County. Although less well known to history enthusiasts because of the rarity of this book, Robert Hall and his exploits were well known to other Texas heroes such as Sam Houston, Ed Burleson, Paint Caldwell, Ben and Henry McCulloch, "Big Foot" Wallace, and Jack Hays. His firsthand accounts of expeditions such as the one that he fought at Plum Creek are nowhere else published; "a gritty, intense chronicle, rich with perspective," says historian Stephen L. Hardin in his introduction to this new edition. Reprinted for the first time from the now extremely rare and valuable 1898 edition, Life of Robert Hall is a vital addition to the collection of first-person accounts of Texas' frontier history, reintroduces Hall and his exploits to the modern reader, and places him securely in the pantheon of Texas heroes where he belongs.

Life of Robert Hall

By 1850, the frontier settlement of San Antonio had seen more than its share of hardships, Indians attacks, rebellions, and repeated military occupations. These events all marked the towns recent past. In 1854, though, the editor of the Alamo Star felt confident enough in the town’s progress to announce that the embattled outpost would soon be known as the “Queen of the West.” The Star, of course, capitalized on the name of the town’s most famous landmark—the Alamo. 
Although historians have written about the battle and the town, no one has yet adequately explained how they are connected to each other. A deeper look at the development of San Antonio shows that it was not only the site of the Battle of the Alamo, it was the center of much of the history of Spain, Mexico, Texas, and the United States. 
Queen of the West: A Documentary History of San Antonio, 1718–1900 takes readers through a series of important writings detailing how San Antonio transformed from an important but threatened outpost to a thriving Edwardian city. The author, Richard Bruce Winders, provides an introduction to each eye-witness account providing diverse perspectives on the history of San Antonio by the people who actually lived it. 
The author is an internationally noted authority on the topic of the Alamo. The work will be a valuable resource for students of history and teachers. The book draws together a body of work that readers would have a difficult time finding on their own. 
The cover art is by noted artist Don Yena.

Queen of the West: A Documentary History of San Antonio, 1718-1900

Winders, Richard Bruce

Sulphur Springs native Frank Webster Pearce was a soldier in Texas' own 36th Infantry Division and the 111th Engineer Combat Battalion. The Division's story has been told before, but never from start to finish by a&nbsp;combat engineer, whose footprints stirred the sands of three invasion beaches, wallowed&nbsp;through the mud, and trudged in the snow of every battle. From training in the United&nbsp;States to the war's end in Austria, Pearce chronicled it all..&nbsp; With the combination of diary, numerous letters home, and official division reports, this is the most complete look ever&nbsp;produced on the 111th Engineers and their war against Hitler's Germany. This is a primary account written daily as the events unfolded. It was the war years. Here you find out how to properly bury a man in the water soaked Italian soil, a fool proof way to smuggle&nbsp;liquor from the US to the soldiers overseas, the foul stench of death reeking across the&nbsp;battlefield, and the beauty of exploding artillery shells in the night sky.&nbsp;These are his thoughts and letters as he wrote them--raw and unfiltered.

A Private in the Texas Army: At War in Italy, France, and Germany with the 111th Engineers, 36th Division, in World War II

Pearce, John A.

Juneteenth: The Story Behind the Celebration

Juneteenth has been touted as a national day celebrating the end of slavery. Observances from coast to coast have turned this event into part of the national conversation about race, slavery, and how Americans understand, acknowledge, and explain what has been called the national "original sin." But, why Juneteenth? Where did this celebration-which promises to become a national holiday-come from? What is the origin story? What are the facts, and legends, around this important day in the nation's history? This is the first scholarly book to delve into the history behind Juneteenth. Using decades of research in archives around the nation, this book helps separate myth from reality and tells the story behind the celebration in a way that provides new understanding and appreciation for the event. This book will captivate people interested in the history of emancipation and African American history but also those interested in Civil War and Texas history. As the United States continues to wrestle with race relations and the meaning of full equality, Juneteenth promises to become an important expression of that equality-an Independence Day celebration in its own right, a couple of weeks in advance of the traditional July 4th Holiday. This book will be a welcome addition to classrooms, book clubs and general readers interested in this once obscure regional event now destined for the national spotlight.

Cotham Jr., Edward T.

Africa

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Books by State House Press at The Texas Center–Schreiner University