This Day in Texas History: Battleship Texas Continues Outstanding Service March 26, 1945 On this day in 1945, the battleship Texas supported the landings for the battle of Okinawa, the final great amphibious assault of World War II. The keel of the Texas, the second battleship to bear this name, was laid at Newport News,…
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This Day in Texas History: Mexican Raiders Strike Texas Ranch March 25, 1918 On this day in 1918, in what proved to be the last serious incident of the border troubles initiated by the Mexican Revolution, Mexican raiders attacked the Neville ranch in northwest Presidio County. Edwin W. Neville’s isolated ranch stretched for eighteen miles…
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This day in Texas History: Fort Worth Stockyards Incorporated March 23, 1893 On this day in 1893, the Fort Worth Stock Yards were officially incorporated. The Fort Worth livestock market became the largest in Texas and the Southwest, the biggest market south of Kansas City, and consistently ranked between third and fourth among the nation’s…
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This day in Texas History: Preservationist Rebecca Fisher Dies March 21, 1926 On this day in 1926, Rebecca Fisher died in Austin. She was born Rebecca Gilleland in Philadelphia in 1831. Her family came to Texas around 1837 and settled in Refugio County. In 1840 Comanches attacked their home, killing Rebecca’s parents and taking Rebecca…
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This day in Texas History: Possum Kingdom Reservoir Completed March 20, 1941 Possum Kingdom Reservoir, popularly known as Possum Kingdom Lake, is on the Brazos River in Palo Pinto, Stephens, Jack, and Young counties It has a capacity of 724,700 acre-feet, a surface area of 19,800 acres, and a shoreline of 310 miles. Here Morris…
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This day in Texas History: Council House Fight Waylays Comanche-White Relations March 19, 1840 On this day in 1840, Republic of Texas soldiers killed some thirty Penateka Comanche leaders and warriors and five women and children in the Council House Fight in San Antonio. The Comanches had come to San Antonio seeking to make peace.…
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This day in Texas History: Big Band Leader Born March 15, 1916 On this day in 1916, Harry James, jazz trumpet player and big-band leader, was born in Albany, Georgia. Though thought by many to be a native Texan, he did not arrive in Texas until the 1930s, when he and his parents moved to…
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This day in Texas History: Bluebonnet Proclaimed State Flower March 07, 1901 On this day in 1901, the Texas legislature proclaimed the bluebonnet the state flower. In the 1930s the state began a highway-beautification program that included scattering bluebonnet seed beside roadways, thus extending the flower’s range. The flower-called in some Indian lore a gift…
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This day in Texas History: Alamo Falls to Mexican Army March 06, 1836 On this day in 1836, the chapel of San Antonio de Valero Mission, under siege for thirteen days by the Mexican army under General Antonio Lòpez de Santa Anna, was subjected to an early morning assault. After a fierce battle, lasting for…
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