Texas
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State flag
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TEXAS,
one of the West South Central states of the U.S., bordered
on the N by Oklahoma, on the NE by Arkansas, on the E by Louisiana,
on the SE by the Gulf of Mexico, on the SW by Mexico, and on the W
by New Mexico. The Red R. forms part of the N boundary, the Sabine
R. forms part of the E boundary, and the Rio Grande forms the border
with Mexico.
Texas entered the Union on Dec. 29, 1845, as the 28th state.
Two 20th-century U.S. presidents— Dwight D. Eisenhower and
Lyndon B. Johnson— were born in Texas. President George
H. W. Bush took up residence in the state in 1948 and retired there
after leaving the White House; his eldest son, George W. Bush, grew
up and lived there, serving as governor from 1995 until 2000, when
he himself was elected president. In the 19th century the Texas
economy was based on cattle breeding, cotton growing, and other
agricultural activities. After 1900 petroleum and natural-gas production
became very important, and the state also developed a diversified
manufacturing sector. The state’s name is derived from tejas,
the mid-16th-century Spanish rendering of a Caddo Indian term meaning ”friends”;
it was adopted and spelled as Texas when the area was organized
as the Republic of Texas in 1836, the year it became independent
of Mexico. Texas is known as the Lone Star State (for the single
star on its flag).
| TEXAS STATE FACTS |
| DATE OF STATEHOOD: |
December 29, 1845; 28th state |
| CAPITAL: |
Austin |
| MOTTO: |
Friendship |
| NICKNAME: |
Lone Star
State |
| STATE SONG: |
“Texas,
Our Texas” (words by Gladys Y. Wright and William J. Marsh;
music by William J. Marsh) |
| STATE TREE: |
Pecan |
| STATE FLOWER: |
Bluebonnet |
| STATE BIRD: |
Mockingbird |
| POPULATION (2000 census): |
20,851,820; 2nd among the states |
| AREA: |
695,621 sq km (268,581 sq mi); 2d largest state; includes 17,570 sq km (6784 sq mi) of inland water |
| COASTLINE: |
591 km (367 mi) |
| HIGHEST POINT: |
Guadalupe Peak, 2667 m (8749 ft) |
| LOWEST POINT: |
Sea level, at the Gulf coast |
| ELECTORAL VOTES: |
34 (as of the 2004 presidential election) |
| U.S. CONGRESS: |
2 senators; 32 representatives |
| GOVERNOR: |
Rick Perry (Rep.) Took office January 2003 |
Texas, with an area of 695,621 sq km (268,581 sq mi),
is the second largest state in the U.S.; 1.7% of its land area is owned
by the federal government. The state is roughly triangular in shape,
and its extreme dimensions are about 1285 km (800 mi) from N to S and
about 1245 km (775 mi) from E to W. Elevations range from sea level
along the Gulf of Mexico to 2667 m (8749 ft) atop Guadalupe Peak in the
W part of the state; the approximate mean elevation is 518 m (1700 ft).
Texas has a coastline of about 591 km (367 mi) along the Gulf of
Mexico; Galveston, Matagorda, and Padre islands are offshore.
Texas can be divided into four major land regions: the Basin and
Range, the Great Plains, the Osage Plains, and the West Gulf Coastal
Plain.
The Basin and Range Region is in W Texas, bounded by the Pecos
R. in the E and the Rio Grande in the W. It comprises isolated mountains
rising from high plains. Deep canyons along the upper Rio Grande
add to the beauty of the region.
The Great Plains cover much of central Texas as well as
most
of the Texas Panhandle in the N. They vary in elevation from about
215 m (about 700 ft) in the E to more than 1219 m (more than 4000
ft) in the Llano Estacado (Staked Plain), along the New Mexico border.
Treeless and dry, the Great Plains are interrupted in the S by the
Texas hill country and the Edwards Plateau. The fertile soils of
the vast expanse are now highly productive as a result of irrigation
and dryland farming and yield bountiful harvests of wheat and cotton.
The Osage Plains extend S from Oklahoma into the N
central
part of Texas. Fertile black soils, particularly in the E section
of the region, make this a favored farming belt for cotton, grain, and
livestock. The hillier W section is better suited to ranching.
The West Gulf Coastal Plain comprises approximately the E
two-fifths of Texas. This is a low, flat area ranging in elevation
from sea level to about 90 m (about 300 ft). Fertile sandy soils
combined with ample warmth and plentiful rainfall make this an agriculturally
productive region.
The Rio Grande, the major river of Texas, forms the border between
the state and Mexico. The Nueces, Colorado, Brazos, Trinity, and
Neches rivers furrow the Texas plains as they flow S toward the
Gulf of Mexico. The Canadian R. flows eastward to join the Arkansas, and the Red R. flows eastward to the Mississippi.
Texas contains numerous artificial lakes formed by dams on
rivers. Amistad and Falcon reservoirs are on the Rio Grande. Lake
Texoma, Wright Patman Lake, Lake Tawakoni, and Lake O’ the
Pines are in the NE. Reservoirs have been constructed to provide
water to most of the cities in central Texas. Salt lakes and basins are
common in the Basin and Range Region.
The Texas climate ranges from near tropical in the lower Rio
Grande Valley to semiarid in the SW and Panhandle. Most of Texas
is within the humid subtropical climate zone.
Summers are hot throughout the state. Average summer high
temperatures range from about 31° C (about 87° F),
at Galveston, to about 34° C (about 94° F), at
Amarillo, with temperatures in excess of 37.8° C (100° F) a
common occurrence. Average winter low temperatures range from 9.4° C
(49° F), at Galveston, to –4.4° C (24° F),
at Amarillo. East Texas is humid, averaging about 1220 mm (about
48 in) of precipitation per year. The Balcones Escarpment, separating
the West Gulf Coastal Plain from the Osage Plains and Great Plains,
acts as a barrier to the W movement of Gulf moisture. Hence the
amount of precipitation drops markedly W of the escarpment. Much
of W Texas receives less than 510 mm (less than 20 in) per year.
Snowfall is generally confined to the N and W. The recorded temperature
in Texas has ranged from –30.6° C (–23° F),
in 1899 at Tulia in the N and in 1933 at Seminole in the NW, to
48.9° C (120 F), in 1936 at Seymour in the N and in 1994 at Monahans in the SW. Hurricanes are
a threat to residents of the Gulf Coast, and tornadoes occur frequently
through the state.
| TEXAS AVERAGE CLIMATE |
| |
El Paso |
Houston |
| Average January temperature range |
–1.1° to 13.9° C |
30° to 57° F |
5.6° to 17.2° C |
42° to 63° F |
| Average July temperature range |
21.1° to 35° C |
70° to 95° F |
22.8° to 34.4° C |
73° to 94° F |
| Average annual temperature |
17.2° C |
63° F |
20.6° C |
69° F |
| Average annual precipitation |
203 mm |
8 in |
1219 mm |
48 in |
| Average annual snowfall |
127 mm |
5 in |
10 mm |
0.4 in |
| Mean number of days per year with appreciable precipitation |
46 |
106 |
| Average daily relative humidity |
30% |
76% |
| Mean number of clear days per year |
194 |
94 |
Vegetation in Texas ranges from dense forests in the E
to deserts in the SW. About 6% of the state is covered by forest. Oaks,
sweet gum, and pine are common in the E. Cypress and live oak thrive in
the S. Juniper, mesquite, and mountain cedar are found in drier
sections and in the mountainous Basin and Range Region. Cacti are
indigenous to the Texas hill country and throughout the Basin and Range
Region.
With the exception of the furrows adjacent to the water
courses, and of trees that have been planted, the Osage Plains and the
Great
Plains are treeless, with a natural grass cover ranging from prairie
grass in the E to steppe grass in the drier W sections. Texas has
more than 4000 species of wild flowers. Bluebonnet, daisy, sunflower,
and goldenrod are among the most prevalent of these flowers.
Animal life is abundant throughout Texas. Small mammals such
as the jackrabbit, skunk, opossum, raccoon, and armadillo are plentiful,
as are the wild turkey and white-tailed deer. Predators include
the mountain lion, bobcat, coyote, and red wolf. Texas leads the
nation in the number of resident cattle, sheep, and horses. It has
more than 100 different species of snakes, some 16 of which are
poisonous. Bass, catfish, and sunfish are common in the streams and reservoirs. The Gulf Coast provides a substantial harvest of
oysters and shrimp.
The varied environment of Texas provides habitat for some
400 species of birds. Among the rarest is the whooping crane, which
is now protected in its winter Gulf Coast home in the Aransas National
Wildlife Refuge. Other endangered species include the ocelot, jaguarundi, and Houston toad.
Texas leads all states in the total production of fuel minerals
such as petroleum and natural gas. Petroleum production takes place
in several important fields in the Gulf Coast, E Texas, the Permian
Basin, and the Panhandle. Natural-gas production is mainly concentrated
in the Panhandle, particularly in the NW corner, where large reserves
of helium are also found.
Abundant supplies of salt and sulfur are located in the West
Gulf Coastal Plain. Texas is also rich in coal reserves, with major
fields in the E and central sections of the state. Other important
minerals include cement, stone, sand and gravel, clay, potash, lead,
mica, molybdenum, tin, tungsten, and zinc.
According to the 2000 census, Texas had 20,851,820 inhabitants,
an increase of 22.8% over 1990; that made Texas the country’s second most populous state, after California and ahead of New York. The average population density in 2000 was 30.7 persons per sq km (79.6 per sq mi) of land area. Whites made up 71.0% of the population and blacks
11.5%; additional population groups included 118,362 American
Indians, 562,319 Asians, and 14,434 Native Hawaiian and other Pacific
Islanders. (These figures do not include the 2.5% of the
population who reported more than one race.) A total of 6,669,666
persons, or almost one in every three Texans, reported being of Hispanic
(primarily Mexican) background. Among the state’s cities,
the largest are Houston; Dallas; San Antonio; Austin, the capital;
El Paso; and Fort Worth.
As of 1990, Baptists (32%) represented the single
largest religious group, followed by Roman Catholics (23.2%),
Methodists (9.2%), Pentecostals (2.9%), and Lutherans (2.4%). In 1990
more than 80% of all Texans lived in areas defined as urban, and the
rest lived in rural areas.
| POPULATION OF TEXAS SINCE 1850 |
| Year of Census |
Population |
Classified As Urban |
| 1850 |
213,000 |
4% |
| 1860 |
604,000 |
4% |
| 1880 |
1,592,000 |
9% |
| 1900 |
3,049,000 |
17% |
| 1920 |
4,663,000 |
32% |
| 1940 |
6,415,000 |
45% |
| 1950 |
7,711,000 |
63% |
| 1960 |
9,580,000 |
75% |
| 1980 |
14,229,000 |
80% |
| 1990 |
16,986,510 |
80% |
| 2000 |
20,851,820 |
-- |
| POPULATION OF TEN LARGEST CITIES IN TEXAS |
| |
2000 Census |
1990 Census |
| Houston |
1,953,631 |
1,630,553 |
| Dallas |
1,188,580 |
1,006,877 |
| San Antonio |
1,144,646 |
935,933 |
| Austin |
656,562 |
465,622 |
| El Paso |
563,662 |
515,342 |
| Fort Worth |
534,694 |
447,619 |
| Arlington |
332,969 |
261,721 |
| Corpus Christi |
277,454 |
257,453 |
| Plano |
222.030 |
127,885 |
| Garland |
215,768 |
180,650 |
Texas has a comprehensive educational system, numerous
museums, interesting historical sites, and a wide variety of outdoor
recreation opportunities.
In 1746 the first public school in Texas was
established, in present-day San Antonio, but it was not until 1839 that
the public school system of Texas began to take shape, with each county
receiving public lands to be used for schools. In 1854 a legislative
act established a uniform state school system, and the constitution of
1869 provided for free public schools for the instruction of all
children. A comprehensive education reform law enacted in the mid-1980s
established a statewide curriculum and mandated tougher academic
standards; a revamped statewide testing program, the Texas Assessment
of Academic Skills (TAAS), was introduced in 1990.
As of 2000, Texas had 7519 public elementary and
secondary schools with a total annual enrollment of about 2,943,000
elementary and middle school pupils and 1,117,000 high school students.
More than 220,000 students annually attended private elementary and
secondary schools in the late 1990s.
Texas has a comprehensive system of colleges and
universities. In the late 1990s the state had nearly 200 institutions
of higher education with a total yearly enrollment of about 969,000
students. The oldest institution of higher education in Texas is
Southwestern University, in Georgetown, founded in 1840. Other notable
schools include Baylor University, in Waco; Rice University, the
University of Houston (1927), Texas Southern University (1947), and
Baylor College of Medicine (1900), in Houston; Southern Methodist
University, in Dallas; Texas A & M University (1876), in College
Station, with branches in Commerce, Corpus Christi, Galveston,
Kingsville, Laredo, and Texarkana; the University of Texas, with
principal campuses in Austin, Arlington, Brownsville, Dallas (in
Richardson), Edinburg, El Paso, Houston, Odessa, San Antonio, and
Tyler; Lamar University (1923), in Beaumont; the University of North
Texas (1890) and Texas Woman—s University (1901), in Denton; Sam
Houston State University (1879), in Huntsville; Southwest Texas State
University (1899), in San Marcos; Stephen F. Austin State University
(1923), in Nacogdoches; Texas Christian University (1873), in Fort
Worth; and Texas Tech University (1923), in Lubbock.
Texas contains a number of cultural institutions, many located in
Dallas, Fort Worth, and Houston. Dallas is home to the Dallas Theater
Center, the only theater building designed by the American architect
Frank Lloyd Wright; the John F. Kennedy Memorial; the Dallas Museum
of Art; the Dallas Museum of Natural History; the
Dallas Symphony Orchestra; and the Dallas Opera. Fort Worth is home
to the Amon Carter Museum of Western Art, which has an excellent collection of American art; the Fort Worth Museum of Science and History; the Kimbell Art Museum; the Texas Ballet Theater; the Fort Worth Opera; and the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra.
Among Houston’s cultural institutions are the Museum
of Fine Arts, which includes the Ima Hogg collection of southwestern
Indian art; the Contemporary Arts Museum; the Menil Collection and
nearby Rothko Chapel; the Houston Museum of Natural Science; the
Houston Ballet; the Houston Symphony Orchestra; and the
Houston Grand Opera. Also of note are the Witte Museum,
in San Antonio; the San Antonio Symphony Orchestra; the Texas Memorial
Museum, in Austin; the Amarillo Art Center; the Art Museum of South
Texas and the Asian Cultures Museum and Educational Center, in Corpus Christi; and the El
Paso Museum of Art.
The first library in Texas was opened in 1839 in
Austin. At the close of the 1990s the state had more than 540 public
libraries. Major collections were in the library system of the
University of Texas at Austin and in the public libraries of Houston,
Dallas, and San Antonio. The Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum,
in Austin, contains materials associated with President Johnson; the
George Bush Presidential Library and Museum is located on the Texas
A&M University campus in College Station.
In Texas are many places of interest that commemorate
the
state’s Spanish heritage and the Texans’ 19th-century
fight for independence from Mexico. Among these are San Jose Mission,
established in 1720, near San Antonio; the Alamo, a fortress that
in 1836 was the site of a Mexican victory in which all defenders
were killed, in San Antonio; San Jacinto Battleground State Historical Park, the
site of the decisive victory in 1836 of the Texans over Mexico,
near Houston; and Fort Davis National Historic Site, on which is
a fort used from 1854 to 1891 to defend travelers between San Antonio
and El Paso, near Fort Davis. Also of interest are Pioneer Village,
a restored log-cabin community, near Corsicana; the birthplace of
President Eisenhower, in Denison; the Sam Rayburn Library and Museum, in Bonham; and Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park, encompassing the birthplace of President Johnson, in Johnson City.
Texas—s Gulf Coast, lakes, rivers, forests, and parks
provide for a wide range of outdoor recreational activities, including
swimming, boating, fishing, hiking, camping, hunting, and golfing.
Professional sports teams in Texas include the Houston Astros and Texas
Rangers baseball teams; the Dallas Cowboys and Houston Texans football teams; the Dallas
Mavericks, Houston Rockets, and San Antonio Spurs basketball teams; and
the Dallas Stars ice hockey team. Texas also is noted for its excellent
collegiate football teams. The postseason Cotton Bowl football game is
held annually in Dallas. The Babe Didrikson Zaharias Memorial Museum,
near Beaumont, honors a leading athlete of the first half of the 20th
century. The Texas Sports Hall of Fame is in Waco.
In the early 1990s the communications system in Texas
included 302 AM and 385 FM radiobroadcasting stations and 124
commercial television stations. The first radio station in the state,
WRR in Dallas, began operation in 1920. The first commercial television
station was WBAP-TV in Fort Worth, which went on the air in 1948.
Gaceta de Texas
, the first newspaper of Texas, began publication in Nacogdoches in
1813. In the late 1990s Texas had 88 daily newspapers with a total
daily circulation of nearly 3 million. Influential dailies included the
Austin American-Statesman
,
Beaumont Enterprise
,
Dallas Morning News
,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
,
Houston Chronicle
, and
San Antonio Express-News
.
Texas is governed under a constitution adopted in 1876, as
amended. Four earlier constitutions had been adopted, in 1845, 1861,
1866, and 1869. An amendment to the constitution may be proposed
by the legislature. To become effective, the amendment must be approved
by a majority of persons voting on the issue in an election.
The chief executive of Texas is a governor, who is popularly
elected to a term of four years and may be reelected any number
of times. The same regulations apply to the lieutenant governor,
who succeeds the governor should the latter resign, die, or be removed
from office. Other elected state administrative officers include
the attorney general, treasurer, comptroller of public accounts, commissioner
of agriculture, and commissioner of general land office. The influential
Texas Railroad Commission, made up of three persons popularly elected
to 6-year terms, regulates the state’s production of petroleum,
natural gas, and coal, as well as its railroads and trucking industry.
The bicameral Texas legislature is composed of a senate and
a house of representatives. The 31 senators are popularly elected
to 4-year terms, and the 150 representatives are elected to 2-year
terms.
The highest tribunals in Texas are the supreme court
and the court of criminal appeals, each with nine justices popularly
elected to 6-year terms. Intermediate jurisdiction in both civil and
criminal cases is exercised by 14 courts of appeals, which together
comprise 80 judges popularly elected to 6-year terms. Lower courts
include the civil and criminal trial courts, called district courts;
county courts of limited jurisdiction; municipal courts; and justice of
the peace courts, which handle small claims and other relatively minor
matters.
In the late 1990s Texas had 254 counties, more than any
other state, and 1177 cities and towns. Each county was governed by an
elected commissioners court consisting of a county judge or
administrator and four commissioners. Other elected county officers
included the county attorney, treasurer, sheriff, and
assessor-collector of taxes. Many of the cities used the
council-manager or commissioner-manager form of government.
Based on the 2000 census and effective with the election of
2002, Texas elects 2 senators and 32 representatives to the U.S.
Congress. The state casts 34 electoral votes for president.
Until recent decades, Texas was a stronghold of the
Democratic
party in both national and state elections. Among Texas Democrats
who played prominent roles in national politics were Sam Rayburn,
longtime Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives (1940–47,
1949–53, 1955–61), and Lyndon B. Johnson, U.S.
Senate majority leader (1955–61), vice-president (1961–63), and
president (1963–69); another Texan, Jim Wright (1922– ),
was Speaker of the House from 1987 to 1989. Since the 1950s the
Republican party has gained strength in the state, and in 1978 William P. Clements (1917– ) was elected governor , becoming the first Republican governor since the late 1860s; he was reelected for another term in 1987. Since the 1980s, Texas has consistently voted Republican in presidential elections.
The economy of Texas has closely reflected key
technological developments that have occurred during the state’s history. The widespread
use of barbed wire in the 1880s enabled improvements in cattle breeding
and ranching. In 1901, Spindletop well, near Beaumont, became the
state’s first great oil gusher. This initiated a period
of oil-induced prosperity and growth that has yet to subside. By
the 1920s the ravages of the boll weevil elsewhere in the southern
U.S., combined with advances in irrigation techniques, led to greatly
increased
cotton production in the state, sustaining a major industry that
has endured to the present. Oil, cotton, and cattle have now been
joined by hundreds of other business and industrial activities.
Some of these reflect further technological developments, such as
those of the aerospace and computer industries. A further stimulus
to diversification was the decline of oil prices in the mid-1980s,
which hurt the state’s energy-producing industries. The
Texas economy benefited from the many federal military installations
located in the state and from such other U.S. facilities as the
Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center, near Houston. A number of major
corporations have headquarters in Texas, especially in Houston and
Dallas-Fort Worth.
| TEXAS STATE ECONOMY |
| STATE BUDGET |
|
| General revenue |
$52.5 billion |
| General expenditure |
$49.6 billion |
| Accumulated debt |
$14.7 billion |
 |
| STATE AND LOCAL TAXES, PER CAPITA |
$2456 |
| PERSONAL INCOME, PER CAPITA |
$27,722 |
| POPULATION BELOW POVERTY LEVEL |
15.1% |
| ASSETS, INSURED COMMERCIAL BANKS (693) |
$137.7 billion |
|
| EMPLOYEES ON NONFARM PAYROLLS |
9,563,500 |
| Employed in services |
29% |
| Employed in wholesale and retail trade |
24% |
| Employed in manufacturing and construction |
17% |
| Employed in government |
16% |
| Employed in transportation and public utilities |
6% |
| Employed in finance, insurance, and real estate |
6% |
|
| MAJOR INDUSTRIES |
% CONTRIBUTED TO GSP* |
| Private service-producing industries |
63% |
| Manufacturing and construction |
19% |
| Government |
11% |
| Mining |
6% |
| Agriculture, forestry, and fishing |
1% |
*Gross State Product = total value of goods and services produced in a year.
Sources: U.S. government publications. Based on most recent data available as of 2002. |
| PRINCIPAL PRODUCTS OF TEXAS |
|
Quantity Produced |
Value |
| FARM PRODUCTS |
|
$13.4 billion |
|
| CROPS |
|
$4.2 billion |
| Greenhouse and nursery products |
-- |
$1.2 billion |
| Cotton |
866,500 metric tons |
$1.0 billion |
| Corn |
7.5 million metric tons |
$475 million |
| Sorghum |
3.6 million metric tons |
$264 million |
| Wheat |
1.8 million metric tons |
$172 million |
| Hay |
8.1 million metric tons |
$168 million |
| Peanuts |
306,000 metric tons |
$156 million |
|
| LIVESTOCK AND LIVESTOCK PRODUCTS |
|
$9.2 billion |
| Cattle and calves |
3.5 million metric tons |
$6.8 billion |
| Chickens (broilers) |
1.2 million metric tons |
$880 million |
| Dairy products |
-- |
$766 million |
| Chicken eggs |
4.4 billion |
$257 million |
| Hogs |
56,000 metric tons |
$114 million |
|
| MINERALS |
|
$38.1 billion |
| Natural gas |
164.9 billion cu m |
$22.9 billion |
| Petroleum |
442 million barrels |
$12.4 billion |
| Coal |
44.9 million metric tons |
$792 million |
| Cement |
9.3 million metric tons |
$709 million |
| Stone |
202.1 million metric tons |
$539 million |
| Sand, gravel |
101.1 million metric tons |
$529 million |
|
| FISHING |
40,000 metric tons |
$232 million |
|
| |
|
Annual Payroll |
| MANUFACTURING |
|
$36.5 billion |
| Computers and electronic equipment |
|
$7.2 billion |
| Chemicals |
|
$4.4 billion |
| Fabricated metal products |
|
$3.8 billion |
| Transportation equipment |
|
$3.4 billion |
| Machinery |
|
$3.2 billion |
| Food |
|
$2.4 billion |
| Printing |
|
$1.4 billion |
| Plastics and rubber products |
|
$1.4 billion |
| Petroleum and coal products |
|
$1.3 billion |
|
| OTHER |
|
|
| Finance, insurance, and real estate |
|
$20.9 billion |
| Retail trade |
|
$20.2 billion |
| Wholesale trade |
|
$18.3 billion |
| Construction |
|
$16.0 billion |
| Transportation and public utilities |
|
$13.6 billion |
| Information |
|
$11.4 billion |
| Sources: U.S. government publications. Based on most recent data available as of 2002. |
Texas, an important agricultural state, typically ranks
second among the 50 states in yearly cash receipts from farming. The
state is a leading producer of a large number of farm products such as
cotton lint, cottonseed, grain sorghum, watermelons, cabbage, spinach,
mohair, horses, sheep and lambs, goats, and beef cattle. Significant
quantities of chickens and hogs are raised. Corn, wheat, hay, rice,
oats, peanuts, pecans, soybeans, citrus fruit, lettuce, sugar beets,
sugarcane, carrots, tomatoes, potatoes, and onions are also important
agricultural products. Nursery and greenhouse production has been a
growth sector in recent decades.
Livestock and livestock products account for about
two-thirds of the state—s more than $13 billion yearly cash receipts
from agriculture; the remaining income is derived from sales of crops.
Beef cattle is the most important livestock industry, with production
spread throughout much of the state. Cotton is grown in three main
areas: the South Plains of the Panhandle (centering in Lubbock), the
West Gulf Coastal Plain near Corpus Christi, and the Lower Rio Grande
Valley. Wheat, corn, sorghum grain, poultry, and dairy products are
other leading sources of farm income in Texas.
The number of farms in Texas has decreased considerably
since 1940, to about 194,000 in the late 1990s. During the same period
the average farm size has increased to about 274 ha (about 676 acres).
Texas is known for its large ranches, such as King Ranch (located near
Corpus Christi), which covers a greater land area than the state of
Rhode Island.
Texas ranks among the leading states in the nation in the
number of tree farms. Four out of five trees harvested are pine,
used principally to make paper products, lumber, and plywood. The
most important area of the state for commercial timber production
is E Texas, especially the area known as the Piney Woods.
With its long Gulf coastline, which includes numerous
bays and estuaries, Texas is an important commercial fishing state. The
annual value of the commercial fish catch as of 2000 exceeded $230
million. Shellfish dominate the catch, with shrimp accounting for most
of the value. Smaller quantities of oysters are taken. The most
important commercial finfish include snapper, flounder, and tuna.
Leading centers of commercial fishing are Port Arthur, Palacios,
Brownsville-Port Isabel, and Galveston.
The annual value of mineral production in 2000 exceeded
$38 billion, ranking Texas first among the 50 states. Oil, natural gas,
and coal accounted for more than 90% of the total. Texas usually ranks
first in production of both crude petroleum and natural gas. The state
has hundreds of oil fields, but those in the Panhandle, the Permian
Basin, and along the Gulf of Mexico are the leading producers.
Other minerals are also important in the state. Coal
production is significant, and Texas is one of the nation—s leading
sulfur producers. The state also produces significant quantities of
cement, stone, sand and gravel, salt, clay, lime, gypsum, talc,
magnesium, helium, iron ore, vermiculite, uranium, and gemstones.
Texas ranks second only to California among the leading
U.S. manufacturing states. In the late 1990s the value added by
manufacture exceeded $130 billion annually, and the value of shipments
totaled more than $300 billion. More than 1 million workers were
employed in manufacturing in the early 2000s. Principal durable
manufactured goods include computers and electronic equipment,
transportation equipment, fabricated metal products, and machinery. The
principal nondurable goods are chemicals, refined petroleum, coal
products, processed food, and textiles and clothing. Other major
manufactures of Texas include stone, glass, and clay items; printed
materials; plastics and rubber goods; lumber, and furniture, paper, and
other wood products. Texas has several important manufacturing centers,
notably Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, El Paso, and Austin.
The travel industry in Texas produces more than $40
billion a year, making tourism one of the leading sectors of the state
economy; about 485,000 Texans work in travel-related industries. The
state—s attractions, which are numerous and diverse, include Big Bend
and Guadalupe Mountains national parks, Alibates Flint Quarries
National Monument, and Padre Island National Seashore, as well as
several national and state historic sites. Some 130 state parks and
recreation areas attract more than 21 million visitors annually. The
Six Flags Over Texas amusement park in Arlington is a favorite
attraction, as are the Six Flags AstroWorld and WaterWorld amusement
complex in Houston and Six Flags Fiesta Texas in San Antonio. Several
major rivers provide opportunities for white-water canoeing and
rafting. Some 200 reservoirs offer exceptional freshwater fishing. Each
year Texas has hundreds of fairs, expositions, and special events such
as the Wurstfest in New Braunfels and the Republic of Texas Chilympiad
(chili cook-off) in San Marcos. Many tourists pass through Texas on the
way to Mexico.
Texas leads all other states in a number of
transportation indicators, including total public road length (484,469
km/301,034 mi), national highway system road length (21,621 km/13,435
mi), total length of railroad track (17,137 km/10,649 mi), and number
of airports (1280) and heliports (396). In addition, many pipelines
carry petroleum and natural gas to other parts of the U.S. Total
railroad length in Texas is declining slowly due to the closing of
feeder lines. The large Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport is
among the busiest in the U.S., and George Bush Intercontinental
Airport/Houston also is a major facility.
The Gulf Intracoastal Waterway parallels the Texas
coast from Brownsville to the Louisiana line, a distance of about 680
km (about 425 mi). The waterway is important for interstate and
intrastate freight movement. Houston is the principal Gulf Coast
seaport of Texas and a leading U.S. port in annual volume of freight
handled. Other major Texas ports include Corpus Christi, Beaumont,
Texas City, Freeport, Port Arthur, and Galveston.
As of 2000, electricity generating plants in Texas had
a capacity of about 80 million kw; their annual output was nearly 380
billion kwh, by far the highest total among the states. About 90% of
the power was produced in conventional thermal installations using
fossil fuels, mainly natural gas and coal; nuclear facilities supplied
almost all the remainder. Texas was a leader in the movement to
deregulate the electric power industry to allow retail competition in
the late 1990s.
Before the arrival of the Europeans, Texas Indian tribes were
many in number and diverse in culture. The Coahuiltecan foraged
over south Texas, where game was often scarce, and the Karankawa
took their food from both land and sea. The Caddo tribes, with their
more advanced lifestyle, practiced agriculture and lived in permanent
homes in east Texas. Along the Rio Grande, the Jumano cultivated
irrigated crops, and the Apache and Tonkawa hunted bison (buffalo)
on the western plains. In later years the arrival of the Comanche, Cherokee,
Wichita, and other tribes added to the cultural milieu.
The Spanish explorers who first ventured among these Indians
arrived only a few years after the voyages of Christopher Columbus.
After being shipwrecked, álvar Núñez
Cabeza de Vaca and his companions lived for several years among
the Karankawa. Francisco Vásquez de Coronado explored the
High Plains of Texas from the vicinity of present-day Lubbock northward
into Kansas in 1539–42, while at almost the same time a
similar expedition led by Luís Moscoso (fl. 1530–43) traveled
among the Caddo through a large area of east Texas. These explorations
were the basis of Spain’s claim to Texas, but their failure
to find treasure and riches led the Spanish to turn elsewhere for
more than a century. Spanish interest revived when Robert Cavelier,
sieur de La Salle, who founded Fort Saint Louis on Matagorda Bay
in 1684, claimed lands for France that included Texas.
To meet the French challenge and to bring Christianity to
the Caddo, the Spanish founded missions in east Texas in 1690. By
1722, when the area was organized as a province, they had settlements
at San Antonio, in East Texas, and near the site of present-day
Goliad, but Texas remained for the most part a sparsely settled borderland.
In 1820, almost three centuries after the first Spanish explorations,
Spanish settlers in Texas numbered only about 2000.
Anglo-American adventurers appeared in the area about 1800,
but significant numbers of Anglo-American immigrants did not arrive
until Stephen Austin and other empresarios (colonizers)
began to locate settlements in Texas in the 1820s. Although Anglo-American
immigration was authorized, first by Spanish officials and after
Mexican independence (1822) by Mexican officials, some Mexican leaders
doubted the wisdom of the policy. After the U.S. made offers to
buy Texas, and a disgruntled empresario tried to
set up an independent Republic of Fredonia in east Texas (1827),
the Mexican government limited further immigration from the U.S.
into the area. Nevertheless, Anglo-Americans made up the largest
portion of a population estimated at more than 24,000 (including
4000 slaves) on the eve of the Texas Revolution.
Texas developed rapidly under Mexican rule, but
revolution broke
out in the autumn of 1835, when President Antonio López
de Santa Anna threw aside Mexico’s democratic constitution and assumed
the powers of a dictator. In early fighting, Texan forces,
which included both Anglos and Mexicans, won decisively. By the
end of 1835 Mexican troops had been driven south of the Rio Grande.
Meanwhile, Texan leaders rejected independence, proclaimed their
loyalty to the Mexican constitution, and denounced Santa Anna.
When a large Mexican army led by Santa Anna returned in the
spring, prospects for a Texan victory appeared dim. The Alamo, an
old Spanish fort at San Antonio, fell in March after all the Texan
defenders had been killed, and in the following weeks Mexican troops
defeated Texan forces across south Texas. While the armies fought
in early March, a convention of Texans at Washington-on-the-Brazos
adopted a declaration of independence, wrote a constitution for
a Republic of Texas, and appointed one of their leaders, Sam Houston, commander
in chief of all Texan armies. The Texan forces, in a dramatic reversal
of fortunes on April 21, 1836, defeated the Mexican army in the
Battle of San Jacinto, captured Santa Anna, and ended the revolution in
victory.
Although never recognized by Mexico, the Republic of
Texas
functioned as a nation for the next nine years. Houston, the first and
third president of the republic, avoided conflict when possible,
spent frugally, and worked for annexation by the U.S. With a grander
dream of empire, the Texan president Mirabeau Lamar opposed annexation
and pursued aggressive foreign policies, which led to more conflicts
with Mexico and financial instability. Never truly secure, the republic
nevertheless won diplomatic recognition from the U.S., Great Britain,
and France, maintained law and order, and encouraged immigration
to Texas from the U.S.
Unlike Lamar, most Texans favored joining the U.S. Despite
opposition from those within the U.S. who were against admitting
another slave state and those who foresaw that annexation would
precipitate a war with Mexico, Texas was admitted to the Union in
1845, and the final transfer of authority took place in February
1846. Texans participated actively in the Mexican War, which broke
out a few weeks later, accepted a compromise that established the
current western boundaries of the state, and continued to encourage
immigration. By 1860 the population of Texas included citizens from
most European nations and Mexico, although the bulk of the people
were immigrants from other southern states and 30 percent of the
population were slaves.
When the crisis over slavery led to the American Civil War,
Texas cast its lot with the Confederacy. Throughout the war it functioned
primarily as a supply source, saw little actual fighting, and suffered
less than other southern states. In like manner, Texas fared relatively
well in the Reconstruction period. Political and racial tensions
were high and problems were many, but a Republican government, imposed
by the victors, ruled generally with moderation and sometimes with
vision, as prosperity slowly returned. Democrats regained control
of state politics by 1874 and retained power with few serious challenges
for the next century.
The decades after Reconstruction were years of growth
and change. By 1880 the Indian tribes in the West had been defeated and
removed to Indian Territory, and railroads were being built
in every section of the state. Cattle brought wealth to Texas during
Reconstruction and for a time thereafter, but the mainstay of the
economy
was cotton. In a population that increased fivefold between 1860 and
1900, eight out of every ten people lived on farms or in small
towns, and most grew cotton.
Change was even more dramatic after 1900. Agriculture
remained
an important part of the economy, with the state leading the nation
in the production of cattle, sheep, cotton, grain sorghum, and some
vegetables. At the sam