Books
April 15, 2024
Waring Cuney Is the Best Harlem Renaissance Poet You’ve Never Heard Of
He hung out with Langston Hughes and wrote verses inspired by his Galveston roots, but he’s largely been forgotten. A new biography seeks to change that.
History
Texas History
April 11, 2024
Texas’s First College for Black Women Lies in Ruins. Can It Find a New Purpose?
In a small East Texas town, Mary Allen College offered opportunity to thousands of Black women, and later men, for nearly nine decades. It’s been shuttered since 1977, but efforts are underway to restore it.
BBQ
March 29, 2024
Historic Barbecue Joints Are Rapidly Becoming History
There's been a spate of closures of old joints over the last few years due to tiny profit margins, costly repairs, and retiring owners.
Libations
March 25, 2024
Beer Nerds, Get Thee to the Library!
The Munday Library at St. Edward's University in Austin, that is, where the Texas Craft Brewing Collections keeps artifacts from the state's illustrious craft beer history for the public to view.
Texas History
February 13, 2024
Barred From a Segregated Golf Course, These Texas Teens Built Their Own
The team from Del Rio went on to win the Texas high school golf championship in 1957—and soon will see its story told in movie theaters around the country.
The Texanist
February 12, 2024
The Texanist: Why Were My Public Schools Named After People I’ve Never Heard Of?
Q: I went to two schools named after presumably notable Texans: James S. Deady Middle School and Charles H. Milby High School. Who were these people?Rick, via emailA: The Lone Star State brims with institutions of public education whose facades are emblazoned with names that are instantly familiar to anyone
Texas History
January 11, 2024
Felix Longoria Died a Hero in World War II. Then His Texas Hometown Refused to Host His Memorial.
His family fought back—and made a lasting impact on the fight for Mexican American rights.
Politics & Policy
December 7, 2023
The Texas Historical Commission Removed Books on Racism and Slavery From Plantation Gift Shops
An agency spokesperson claimed that the move had nothing to do with politics. Internal emails show otherwise.
Food & Drink
November 20, 2023
The History of Pecan Coffee, the Perfect Fall Drink
From Indigenous tribes to Mexicans to Civil War soldiers, many people have used the native nut to add sweetness and creaminess to their daily rituals.
Sports
November 14, 2023
The Pioneering, Barnstorming Women’s Basketball Stars of the Texas Cowgirls
The Texas Cowgirls weren’t all from the state, but the groundbreaking women’s pro team promoted itself with loads of Texas mystique.
Texas History
October 11, 2023
The U.S.S. Texas, Once the World’s Most Formidable Battleship, Gets a Dramatic Makeover
The famously powerful dreadnought was hailed by Hemingway and played a key role in several famous battles.
Libations
September 12, 2023
At 90, Riley’s Tavern Is Filled With Smoke, Music, and History
This Hill Country bar and honky-tonk—the first in the state to obtain a liquor license after Prohibition—still fosters community after nine decades.
BBQ
September 7, 2023
Is Everything We Know About the Origins of Barbecue Wrong?
In his new book, “From Barbycu to Barbecue,” Joseph R. Haynes explains why he believes barbecue is a strictly American invention.
Libations
August 16, 2023
A Historic Bar in Port Aransas Finds a New Home
Shorty’s Place, a coastal dive that has been around since the 1940s, cleans up and moves on while maintaining its signature charm as a community hangout.
Tacos
August 15, 2023
The Nearly Forgotten History of the Viral Smash-Burger Taco
You’ve likely seen videos of the Big Mac–taco hybrid on social media, but the dish isn’t a newfangled fad—it has roots going back to the early 1900s.
News & Politics
August 9, 2023
A Dubious “Link to Jesus” Will Soon Make Its Dallas Debut
Declared a fake by many experts, the James Ossuary is coming to Texas for its first American exhibit.
Politics & Policy
July 20, 2023
“I Think He’s a Muslim at Heart”: Texas State Historical Association Leader Endorsed Obama Conspiracy Theory
J.P. Bryan, the embattled executive director of the TSHA, faces criticism for his approach to history—including recent history. He says he hasn’t seen evidence that the former president is a Christian.
Texas Country Reporter
March 31, 2023
An East Texas Local Wants You to Remember Trammel’s Trace
The early road used by Native Americans and settlers ran through what would become Gary Pinkerton’s family farm in Rusk County.
Texas Country Reporter
March 19, 2023
A Small-town Gun Museum Tells a Story of Our Past
Dale Acker is the collector behind the Up in Arms museum in Nazareth, which is home to more historical weapons and artifacts than the town has people.
Texas History
February 21, 2023
Pop Quiz: What Inspired the “Tex Education” Quiz?
Long before quizzes littered the internet, TM’s Anne Dingus delighted readers with a hundred-question series that doubled as a “CliffsNotes of Texas history.”
BBQ
February 10, 2023
Thirty Years Ago, the First Wagyu Cows Came to the U.S. Now, the Industry Is Bigger Than Anyone Predicted.
Trade wars with Japan, $250 vials of semen, and livestock-filled airplanes all contributed to the still-growing industry of Wagyu beef today.
Texas History
October 4, 2022
Did JFK Really Eat the World’s Largest Tamale?
How a San Antonio restaurant manager pioneered the art of taco diplomacy.
BBQ
September 26, 2022
Is Elgin’s Southside Market the Oldest Barbecue Joint in Texas? The Saga Continues.
Six years ago, we set out to answer that question and got inconclusive results. And while we’ve found new info, the mystery endures.
BBQ Joint Reviews
September 6, 2022
This North Texas Barbecue Joint Honors an Iconoclast Newspaper Publisher
When Jordy Jordan opened the second location of Big D BBQ in the old Midlothian Mirror office, he wanted to pay homage to its controversial leader Penn Jones Jr.
Film & TV
August 31, 2022
Why the Texas Archive of the Moving Image Is the Best Follow on TikTok
The Austin-based nonprofit has become a social media star with clips of vintage local newscasts, bizarre industrial films, and one-of-a-kind celebrity encounters.
Politics & Policy
August 25, 2022
Opinion: What the 1836 Project Leaves Out in Its Version of Texas History
The Legislature established a committee last year to “promote patriotic education.” Drafts of one of its pamphlets reveal an effort to sanitize the state’s long struggle with racial issues.
Tex-Mexplainer
August 4, 2022
Trompo Tacos Are So Much More Than Tacos al Pastor
Although the Mexico City style is dominant, tacos made with trompo meat vary regionally, offering many ways to enjoy the spit-roasted specialty.
Sports
July 28, 2022
The Night That Grasshoppers Killed Texas League Baseball
Fifty years ago, a minor league game in Midland was postponed for the rarest of reasons—a swarm of grasshoppers biblical in its proportions.
BBQ
July 28, 2022
Three Generations Have Kept Underwood’s Cafeteria Serving Barbecue for 76 Years
The rich history of the Brownwood restaurant includes expansions, bankruptcy, a catchy jingle, and a towering cowboy statue that still stands.
Texas History
March 25, 2022
The Surprising, Fraught History of the Texan Jewish Experience
Galveston was once the Ellis Island of the South. But Jewish arrivals had to navigate a society marked by racial and religious politics.
Music
January 25, 2022
Eighty Years Later, We’re Still ‘Deep in the Heart of Texas’
How a simple, two-chord song written by an Iowan became (clap clap clap clap) our unofficial state anthem.
BBQ
November 1, 2021
A Barbecue Nerd’s Guide to the Most Historic Joints in Texas
Founded as far back as 1886, these barbecue joints laid the foundation for the pitmasters of today—and what they’re serving is as delicious today as it was in centuries past.
Being Texan
August 6, 2021
These Photos of Abandoned Buildings Will Transport You to a Bygone Texas
Plus: a trip to Ruby City and a podcast that will spice up your weeknights.
Books
April 9, 2021
When the Political Gets Personal
Veteran Austin journalist Bill Minutaglio’s latest book is a crowd-pleasing account of heated political battles in Texas over the past 150 years. But does it get the big picture right?
Texas History
December 15, 2020
What Happened at Pease River Wasn’t a Battle. It Was a Massacre.
How a Texas Ranger’s personal mythology came to be accepted as popular history.
Being Texan
June 18, 2020
Essay: Celebrating Juneteenth in 2020 Is an Act of Resistance
I’ve always observed Juneteenth, but this year the stakes feel higher than ever.
Being Texan
March 6, 2018
How the Alamo Got Its Hump
The “ridiculous scroll” didn’t top the structure until after the Battle of the Alamo.
The Culture
February 7, 2018
A Deep Dive Into How Dallas Got Its Name
Prepare for a tale of blackface minstrelsy and swashbuckling high seas adventures, a whodunit with the last page maddeningly ripped out.
Texas History
September 22, 2016
The Texas Connection to The Iconic Photo of V-J Day in Times Square
Longview lawyer Howard Coghlan, who identified himself in the photograph, passed away at 89.
The Daily Post
July 27, 2015
From Texas to Cuba: An Epic Road Trip, Castro’s Trip to Houston, and How It’s Changed
As the doors to Cuban travel slowly re-open, the author’s dad recalls his epic road/cruise ship trip to Havana just before Castro’s take-over, and we remember Castro’s hero’s welcome in Houston a few months later.
The Daily Post
May 28, 2015
Hakeem Olajuwon, the Rockets Star Who Valiantly Fought to End Sneaker Violence
As Houston basketball fans mourn the end of the Rockets season, we remember the efforts of one of the team’s all-time greats.
Film & TV
May 13, 2015
That Sinking Feeling
Don’t invite a history buff to your "Texas Rising" viewing party.
Arts & Entertainment
February 12, 2015
The White Stuff
The secret history of cotton, the crop that transformed the global economy—and kept Texans in poverty for generations.
The Daily Post
January 8, 2015
Does “Selma” Get LBJ Wrong?
The Golden Globe-nominated film about the Civil Rights Movement is the subject of some unexpected controversy regarding its depiction of the relationship between Martin Luther King and President Lyndon Johnson.
The Daily Post
August 1, 2014
1983 New York Times Profile Of Austin Showcases The Fact That Austinites Have Always Complained About The City Changing
'Booming Austin Fears It Will Lose Its Charms' is a story that could be—and has been—written any number of times over the past 30+ years, the evidence shows.
Books
June 5, 2014
Race and Relations
Journalist Chris Tomlinson delves into the parallel histories of two Texas families with the same last name—one black, one white.
Practice
April 2, 2014
Tips From the Great Debater
At 94 years old, debate icon Thomas Freeman has taught everyone from Martin Luther King Jr. to Barbara Jordan.
Food & Drink
November 12, 2013
Chicken Fried State
How a lowly cut of beef—breaded, spiced, and fried to order—was transformed into a vessel for the modern food system.
Sports
March 11, 2013
Hoop Queens
Half a century ago, the women’s basketball team at Wayland Baptist College set an extraordinary record that may never be broken: the longest winning streak in sports history.
The Culture
January 24, 2013
All Hat, Some Cattle
In search of the authentic spirit of Fort Worth.