Have you ever wondered how long humans have occupied our stretch of the Brazos River? Think maybe 500 or even 1000 years? Guess again. Horn Shelter is only about 50 miles downstream on the Brazos from where we sit here in Granbury. texashighways.com/travel-news/bosque-countys-horn-shelter-exhibit-is-history-you-can-dig/
Bosque County's Horn Shelter Exhibit Is History You Can Dig - Texas Highways
texashighways.com
The Horn Shelter burial site was unearthed in 1970 and dates to the Paleoamericans, the founding human population of North America.
The story of how we got to Austin ...Mrs. Eberly firing the cannon outside her boarding house to protect the Texas archives.
In what became known as the Archives War, Lamar moved the capital from Houston to Waterloo (later Austin); when Houston became President, he ordered the capital moved back to Houston. Men were sent with wagons to retrieve the archives. In the early morning hours of December 30, 1842, Mrs. Eberly hearing the noise, fired the cannon to alert the citizens of Austin- the cannon ball hit the General Land Office. Citizens were alerted, gave chase and the archives remained in Austin.
In 1850, Austin became the permanent Capitol of Texas.
Gen Patrick Cleburne, Namesake of County seat of Johnson County, adjacent to Hood County. Both Gens Cleburne and Granbury were killed at the Battle of Franklin.Following Arkansas’ secession on May 6, 1861, Patrick Cleburne, an Irish immigrant to Arkansas, helped to raise a company of 115 volunteers. The Yell Rifles looked to Cleburne, who had some military experience in the 41st Regiment of Foot in the British Army, as their captain.
Cleburne and his company of soldiers marched of to war. The fall of 1861, however, saw his elevation to command the 2nd Brigade of Gen. William Hardee’s Division. His first taste of action in this capacity came at the Battle of Shiloh. The fighting that took place over April 6 and 7, 1862 shocked the nation and revealed the horrors of the war. Cleburne’s war, by 1863 had seen him wounded three times but his star was on the ascendant. Becoming one of the best commanders in the Confederate Army by January 1, 1864, Cleburne earned a reputation for incredible skill and determination during battle.
The following day, January 2, Cleburne summoned the other division and corps commanders of the Army of Tennessee to present a proposal to free and arm slaves in the Confederacy. Slavery, he contended was “their most vulnerable point, a continued embarrassment, and in some respects an insidious weakness.” Cleburne’s proposal drew the wrath of his contemporaries, chiefly Gen. W.H.T. Walker. Other officers, including Thomas Hindman and Benjamin Cheatham, either supported Cleburne and the idea, or endorsed the proposal. By and large, however, the others present were ambivalent or is dissention but not to the degree of Walker. Despite Gen. Joseph E. Johnston’s orders that the proposal remain a secret, Walker forwarded a copy on to Richmond. In a letter to Confederate President Jefferson Davis, Walker excoriated Cleburne pronouncing, “I honestly believe the propagation of such sentiments in our army will ruin our cause and that it is my duty to lay the document before the Chief Magistrate of the country . . .” Davis ordered that the proposal be suppressed and further ordered all copies of it destroyed and any mention of it redacted. Cleburne’s star began to wane in the eyes of his superiors in Richmond and other Confederate officers. Among the most critical of detractors was Davis’ military adviser, Braxton Bragg- the former commander of the Army of Tennessee, and Brig. Gen. States Rights Gist. The two exchanged letters praising Walker for his stand against the “Abolitionist Party of the South” and identifying Cleburne and others in favor of the proposal as “traitors.” Suppressed from the public, Cleburne’s proposal failed and his path forward in the Confederate Army seemed uncertain. “Great sensation is being produced” wrote Bragg, “by the Emancipation project of Hardee, Cleburne, Cheatham, & Co. It will kill them.”
As promotions for other officers came, Cleburne was passed over again and again. Still, he commanded the most able division in the Army of Tennessee and was, doubtless, the most talented division commander. Ten months later, on November 30, 1864, he looked out over the rolling fields of Franklin, TN. In the distance, Federal troops dug in. Confederate army commander John Bell Hood made the decision to charge their position. In the end, it would not be the “Emancipation project” that would kill Cleburne, but a single bullet.
The Texas story of Dr PepperBeloved in Texas and beyond, Dr Pepper was first made in Waco in 1885.
At Morrison’s Old Corner Drug, a pharmacist named Charles Alderton often served soft drinks to customers when he wasn’t filling prescriptions. Store owner Wade Morrison bought the formula for the drink and, with chemist Robert S. Lazenby, formed the company that became Dr Pepper.
The Dr Pepper Museum & Free Enterprise Institute in Waco is located in the 1906 Artesian Manufacturing and Bottling Company building. Exhibits showcase the history of the soft-drink company and the broader subject of a free economy.
📷: The Library of Congress, The Lyda Hill Texas Collection of Photographs in Carol M. Highsmith's America Project
Timeline photosAdd-Ran Christian University changed its name to Texas Christian University 120 years ago. The old site of TCU in Waco is today’s #markermonday. The university was founded in 1876 as AddRan Male and Female College in Thorp Springs, where it resided until 1895. The university moved to Waco after the city offered fifteen acres and the building of the Waco Female College for its campus. AddRan blossomed while in Waco: a football team was put together in 1896, students participated in literary societies on campus, the Horned Frog yearbook was first published in 1898, and students chose the school colors of purple and white. A fire in March 1910 decimated the main building, forcing classes to finish the semester in dining halls, the lawn, and the girls’ residence. Since only a small portion of the damage was insured, multiple cities across the state put in bids to convince the university to move. Fort Worth offered TCU fifty acres of land, connection to municipal utilities, easy streetcar access, and $200,000; TCU accepted the offer and relocated to Cowtown, where is has been located for the past 112 years. Here’s to another 112 years in Fort Worth!
📸 texashistoricalmarkers.weebly.com
David Crockett
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Reconstructed in 1936, old Fort ParkerOld Fort Parker near Groesbeck was included on our 2021 Most Endangered Places list, announced last month. In 1836, the frontier settlement known as "Fort Parker" in present-day Limestone County was attacked, resulting in the death and kidnapping of numerous settlers. Cynthia Ann Parker was among the kidnapped and her son, Quanah Parker, became a renowned Comanche leader. During the Texas Centennial year of 1936, Fort Parker was reconstructed based on plans drawn by architect Raiford Stripling in consultation with the National Park Service. In the 1960s, inferior building materials were replaced as part of a campaign to ensure that the reconstructed Fort would endure.
Old Fort Parker is an important historic site that represents a significant chapter of the state's frontier history. Archaeological research, the development of an interpretive master plan, and greater awareness to increase visitation will support needed investments to address deferred maintenance and enhance the protection of the Fort's cultural landscape.
A great story on an amazing restoration and preservation in Flower Mound, Denton County
The list of Texas characters is endless / here’s Governor Pappy O’Daniel!Speaking of Texas BBQ (and let's face it: when are we NOT speaking of Texas BBQ?), here's Governor "Pappy" O'Daniel "mopping" sauce on some meat before the barbecue celebration held at the time of his second inauguration in January, 1941. O'Daniel was quite an interesting character. Among other things, he's the only person to have ever beat LBJ in an election and got Bob Wills started on his career in music when he hired Bob to be one of the Light Crust Doughboys, a western swing band that was created to provide musical/advertising support for Burrus Mills, a flour-milling company based in Fort Worth. O'Daniel also composed the song "Beautiful Texas." Here are the Light Crust Doughboys singing that song:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxITNu1MYkU
The Texas story of the approval of the flag of The Republic of TexasOn this day, 183 years ago, the Lone Star Flag was born in a legislative bill introduced on December 28, 1838, in Houston. Senator William H. Wharton introduced the statute which described the design of the flag. A Senate committee, commissioned artist Peter Krag to draw an official rendition of the flag design which was ultimately approved by Congress and President Mirabeau B. Lamar in January 1839. This new Lone Star flag would've been the flag of the Republic that Dubois would've seen upon his arrival in Texas.
The drawing pictured here bears the signatures of President Lamar, House Speaker John M. Hansford, and Senate President (Republic Vice President) David G. Burnet. Krag’s drawing resides in the Texas State Library and Archives Commission.
#frenchlegationshs #frenchlegationaustin #frenchlegation #texas #texashistory #lonestar #lonestarflag #texasflag
LAST CHANCE TO EXPERIENCE CHRISTMAS CAROL! Final performances are Dec 30th! Shows at 6pm & 8pm each night til then! We hope to see you there! Thank you Granbury for an incredible year... we can't wait to announce what all is coming in 2022!
For tickets: brianclowdus.com/performances/the-christmas-carol-experience