Some TEXAS MONTHLY Stories on History
Remains of the Day »
The Texas State Cemetery, home to the final resting places of the celebrated and the notorious, is a walk through time, revealing all that is great, courageous, tragic, pompous, and absurd about Texas.
by Gary Cartwright [May 2008]
What a Crockett! »
There should be no mystery about the latest artifact of “history.”
by Gregory Curtis [January 2008]
“Oh, My God! It’s Our Children!” »
On March 18, 1937, the residents of New London, southeast of Tyler, endured the worst small-town tragedy in U.S. history: an explosion at the combined junior-senior high school that killed some three hundred students and teachers. Seventy years later, 47 survivors share their memories of that horrific day.
by Katy Vine [March 2007]
“Beldades” Of the Ball »
Every February, on the weekend of Presidents’ Day, the daughters of Laredo’s most prominent families are presented to society in dresses that cost $20,000 or more at a colonial pageant that is the party of the year.
by Pamela Colloff [April 2006]
Making Up Is Hard to Do »
How the cosmetically challenged among us manage to save face.
by Anne Dingus [April 2005]
Fallen Heroes »
One riot, one Ranger, one much-maligned historian: rereading Walter Prescott Webb.
by Don Graham [February 2005]
Sarita's Secret »
Could Ray Fernandez, the grandson of a Mexican
American maid, be the rightful heir to the vast Kenedy
fortune, including the family's mythic South Texas ranch?
by Gary Cartwright [September 2004]
Kenedy Mystique »
Senior editor Gary Cartwright on researching the Kenedy
family, one of the state's ranching dynasties.
Interview by Lauren Smith [September 2004]
Bombshells Away »
In this summer of D-day nostalgia, we pause to
remember the unsung heroines of World War II: the
pinup girls painted on the noses of B-24's and other
planes for luck and inspiration. Some of the most
colorful artwork is on permanent display in Midland.
Permission to view it granted.
by Katharyn Rodemann [August 2004]
Spirit of the Alamo »
If you're an Alamo fan—and even if you aren't—you'll find these fifteen titles worth your while.
by Anne Dingus [March 2004]
Fair's Fair »
The State Fair has seen it all, from a model of the Washington Monument made entirely out of human teeth to a visit by King Olaf V of Norway on Norweigian Day.
by Anne Dingus [September 2003]
25 Stories About Bob Bullock »
He's gone but not forgotten—particularly now,
when leadership is in such short supply. Friends and
colleagues recall why the late lieutenant governor was
one of a kind.
by Patricia Kilday Hart [July 2003]
O Sister, Where Art Thou? »
History makes no mention of what was one of the most popular all-female country acts ever. Yet the story of the Goree Girls-inmates who banded together in the forties at Texas' sole penitentiary for women—is worth a listen.
by Skip Hollandsworth [May 2003]
Girl Talk »
Executive editor Skip Hollandsworth discusses this month's feature "O Sister, Where Art Thou?"
[May 2003]
Blue Notes »
Goree prison unit inmate Hattie Ellis had a short-lived recording career, but her music made a lasting impression.
by Skip Hollandsworth [May 2003]
Ground Coverage »
Photographer O. Rufus Lovett discusses the three days he spent documenting the haunting wreckage of Columbia in East Texas.
Interview by Jordan Breal [April 2003]
Walking Among Ghosts »
Senior editor Michael Hall revisits Waco's Branch Davidians and describes the challenges and nuances of writing about the remaining followers and the controversies of their tragic history.
Interview by Jordan Breal [April 2003]
The Alamo Should Never Have Happened »
Yes, we should remember the battle at the center of the Texas Revolution. But we should forget everything we think we know about it.
by H. W. Brands [March 2003]
All About My Mother »
Widowed at 38, a Mexican citizen with no money and a sixth-grade education, she raised three proud American daughters—and embraced life on her own terms.
by Cecilia Ballí [February 2003]
The Warrior's Bride »
Cynthia Ann Parker was nine when a Comanche snatched her from her East Texas home in 1836. Yet throughout her life as her captor's wife she remained strong, brave, and devoted to her husband and children. Which is to say, she was the original Texas woman.
by Jan Reid [February 2003]
Two Wings and a Prayer »
Legend has it that an East Texas preacher's homemade flying machine took off in late 1902, nearly a year before Kitty Hawk. Are the history books wrong about who was first in flight—or are they right, brothers?
by Michael Hall [January 2003]
A Ride for Mrs. Oswald »
On November 22, 1963, I was a police reporter for the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. I worked the late shift, but I rushed to the office as soon as I heard that President Kennedy had been shot, and I started answering the phones. The first call I took was from the mother of the alleged assassin. She asked me for a lift to Dallas. Guess what I said?
by Bob Schieffer [January 2003]
First to Flight? »
Texas Monthly senior editor Michael Hall launches into a discussion about his story "Two Wings And A Prayer."
Interview by Stacy Hollister [January 2003]
Fort Worthy »
Face the Nation host Bob Schieffer remembers Cowtown in the sixties.
Interview by Elizabeth Lewis [January 2003]
Lights Out »
Most of the lighthouses that once kept watch over the Texas Gulf Coast have vanished, victims of time and the modern world. Yet a few romantic relics remain.
by Anne Dingus [November 2002]
Fantasy Island »
When I went back to Galveston to inspect the renovation of the famed Balinese Room, I turned up a bit of my own history.
by Gary Cartwright [October 2002]
Location, Location, Location »
There's no denying that a home with history—especially when the former inhabitant was Santa Anna—is a big draw.
by Maureen Turner [October 2002]
Dead Line »
Indians slain by settlers and vice versa. Lynchings and shoot-outs. Poisonings and dismemberings. Assassinations and massacres. Our past three hundred years or so have been, uh, colorful. A fond look back at the murder and mayhem.
by Anne Dingus [July 2002]
Prehistory Lesson »
Three sites near Del Rio with outstanding examples of rock art makes learning about ancient history fun for moms and dads. Kids too.
by Eileen Schwartz [June 2002]
Sharp Shooter »
Richard Young knows it takes a lot of practice—and a little natural ability—to be a proficient cowboy action-shooter.
by John Morthland [May 2002]
Tex Education, Part 4 »
Can you keep up with the state's most famous Joneses? Get to the bottom of this burning question—and 21 others—by taking the final installment of my Texas literacy test.
by Anne Dingus [December 2001]
Lyndon Johnson on the Record »
Working on his memoir one day in 1969, LBJ spoke more frankly into a tape recorder about the Kennedys, Vietnam, and other subjects than he ever had before. The transcript of that tape has never been published—until now. Michael Beschloss explains its historical significance.
[December 2001]
Tex Education, Part 3 »
What tall Texan dated top actress during Hollywood's heyday? Find out the answer-and other Lone Star lore-by taking the penultimate installment of my literacy test.
by Anne Dingus [October 2001]
Tex Education, Part 2 »
In 1883, being caught with what everyday object could have gotten you killed? Find out the answer, along with 24 other equally fascinating tidbits, in the second installment of my Texas-literacy test.
by Anne Dingus [June 2001]
The Second Battle of Goliad »
In March 1836, 342 men fighting for Texas
independence surrendered to Mexican general
José de Urrea. A week later they were shot on orders of Santa Anna. Was it a massacre, as generations of schoolchildren have been taught, or an execution? The question has divided a historic Texas
town.
by Cecilia Ballí [May 2001]
Cemeteries »
Simple wooden crosses in Terlingua, carefully delineated stonework in Jefferson: Five great graveyards that run the gamut.
by John Morthland [March 1999]
Squares »
A masterpiece of courthouse architecture in Waxahachie, a handsome jail of native stone in Marfa: Significant structures line the streets of five terrific town centers.
by Paul Burka [March 1999]
The Assassination at 35 »
A handsome young president, a convertible limousine, a sniper, three shots (we think);and our lives were changed forever. A special report on what is, for many, the defining event of the past fifty years.
[November 1998]
Unconventional »
From Lee Otis Johnson’s arrest to Ben Barnes’s ascent, 1968 was a hell of a year in Texas.
by Joe Holley [August 1998]
Forget the Alamo »
Sorry, T.R. Fehrenbach: The new Texas historians don’t care about Davy Crockett or other old icons. To them, the real heroes are women, blacks, and yes, Mexican Americans.
by Debbie Nathan [April 1998]
Out There »
For seven days Rick McLaren and his armed cohorts were holed up in their Republic of Texas “embassy” while reporters dug for stories, lawmen kept watch, and the residents of nearby Fort Davis wished they’d all go away.
by Joe Nick Patoski [June 1997]
The Way We Wore »
From buckskin to polyester, a look at 166 years of Texas fashion that doesn’t skirt the issues.
by Anne Dingus [June 1997]
Dig This »
An archeological dig in Matagorda Bay unearths a bureaucratic feud.
by Brad Tyer [September 1996]
State of Mind »
On February 19, 1846, the flag was lowered on the Republic of Texas for the last time. Here’s a look back at what was our national interest, and all that it might have been.
by Paul Burka [February 1996]
The Lost Tribe »
They were the classic Texas Indians—fierce, majestic, and free. Today’s Comanches find their lives defined by legends and bitter truths.
by Stephen Harrigan [February 1989]
Behind the Lines »
The sixth floor.
by Gregory Curtis [April 1988]
Texas Primer: Barbed Wire »
It spelled the end of the open range and the beginning of modern Texas.
by Anne Dingus [March 1984]
The Sons of the Pioneers »
Miles from their nearest neighbors, beset by drought, debt, insects, and government, Panhandle farmers gamble everything to keep alive a tradition they can’t abandon.
by Richard West [September 1978]
Why Dallas? »
When John Neely Bryan built his cabin he didn't know what would happen to Big D as it grew, or why it would happen. A. C. Greene searches through old photographs and records to give us the answer.
by [December 1973]
Mother of the Decade »
Lee Harvey Oswald's mother wants to tell the world how she got out from under Jackie's shadow.
by Alexander Cockburn [November 1973]
45 Years (Sat Nov 22 at 5:28 PM)
Can You Spare Some Change I Can Believe In? (Sat Nov 22 at 4:10 PM)
Even Worse, They're Cutting Back on Monocles (Fri Nov 21 at 8:39 AM)
