Texas Facts, Trivia, Etc.

If you would like to add any facts or trivia - please email to info@vancelane.com 

What Jeff Foxworthy has to say about folks from Texas:

If someone in a Lowe's store offers you assistance & they don't work there,
you may live in Texas

If you've worn shorts & a parka at the same time, you may live in Texas

If you've had a lenghty telephone conversation with someone who dialed a wrong number, you may live in Texas

If you measure distance in hours, you may live in Texas

If "Vacation" means going anywhere south of Dallas for the weekend, you may live in Texas

If you know several people who have hit a deer more than once, you may live in Texas

If you install security lights on your house & garage but leave both unlocked, you may live in Texas

If you carry jumper cables in your car & your wife knows how to use them, you may live in Texas

If the speed limit on the highway is 55mph - you're going 80 & everybody's passing you, you may live in Texas

If you find 60 degrees "a little chilly," you may live in Texas

If you actually understand these jokes & share them with all your Texas friends, you definitely live in Texas

Texas Trivia

 1  The name "Texas" comes from the Hasini Indian word "tejas"
    meaning "friends." Tejas is not Spanish for Texas.
 2  Beaumont to El Paso: 742 miles
 3  Beaumont to Chicago: 770 miles
 4  El Paso is closer to California than to Dallas
 5  Worlld's 1st rodeo was in Pecos (July 4, 1883)
 6  The Flagship Hotel in Galveston is the only hotel in North
    America built over water.
 7  The Heisman Trophy was named after John William Heisman
    who was the first full-tome coach at Rice University in Hous-
    ton
 8  Brazoria County has more species of birds than any other area
    in North America
 9  Aransas Wildlife Refuge is the winter home of North America's 
    only remaining flock of Whooping Cranes.
10  The 1st spoken word from the moon, July 20, 1969, was
     "Houston."
11  King Ranch in South Texas is larger than Rhode Island.
12  Tropical Storm Claudette brought a U.S. rainfall record of 43
     in 24 hours in & around Alvin in July of 1979.
13  Texas is the only state to enter the U.S.  by treaty instead
     of annexation. This allows the Texas flag to fly at the same
     heigth as the U.S. flag & may divide into 5 states. 
14  A Live Oak tree near Fulton is estimated to be 1500 yrs old.
15  Dr Pepper was invented in Waco in 1885. There is no period in
     Dr Pepper.
16  Caddo Lake is the only natural lake in the state.
17  Texas has had 6 capitals: Washington on the Brazos,
     Harrisburg, Galveston, Velasco, west Columbia & Austin.
18  The Capitol Dome in Austin is the only dome in the U.S. which
     is taller than Capitol
      Building in Washington (by 7 feet)
19  The State Mascot is the Armadillo (an interesing bit of trivia
     about the armadillo is they always have 4 babies. They have
     one egg which splits into 4 & they either have 4 males or 4
     females.)
20  The 1st domed stadium in the U.S. was the Asrodome in
     Houston.
21  Texas has more counties than any other state (254)
22  Texas is the nation's leading producer of oil, natural gas,
      beef, sheep, goats, wool, cotton, rice & watermelons.
23  The land area of Texas is larger than all of New England, New
     York, Pennsylvania, Ohio & Illinois combined. It extends 801
     miles from north to south & 773 miles from east to west.
24  The Dallas/Ft. Worth Airport is larger than New York City's
     Manhattan Island.
25  The state was an independent nation from 1836 to 1845.
26  The capitol building is made from Texas pink granite.
27  Austin is considered the live Music Capitol of the World.
28  Texas is home to Dell & Compaq computers & central Texas is
     often referred to the Silicon Valley of the south.
29  The 1st suspension bridge in the U.S. was the Waco Bridge
     built in 1870. It is still in use today as a pedestrian crossing
     of the Brazos River.
30  Laredo is the world's largest inland port.
31  The Tyler Municipal Rose Garden is the world's largest rose
     garden. It contains 38,000 rose bushes representing 500
     varieties of roses set in a 22 acre garden.
32  Pecan trees are the official state trees. Native pecan trees
     have shown to be 150 years old and can grow an average of
     70-100 feet tall.
33  The underside of the Congress Avenue Bridge in Austin is
      home to the nation's
      largest urban colony of bats. (Mexican Freetails)
34  Amarillo has the world's largest hellium well.
35  Texas leads the nation in the sale of pick-up trucks.
36  There are 6,736 lakes in Texas, giving it 4,959 square miles
      of inland water.