A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day....08-05-03....Texas, MY Texas

Billie

[Billie]

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day

Free Republic made its debut in September, 1996, and the forum was added in early 1997.   Over 100,000 people have registered for posting privileges on Free Republic, and the forum is read daily by tens of thousands of concerned citizens and patriots from all around the country and the world.

A Few of FR's Finest....Every Day was introduced on June 24, 2002. It's only a small room in JimRob's house where we can get to know one another a little better; salute and support our military and our leaders; pray for those in need; and congratulate those deserving. We strive to keep our threads entertaining, fun, and pleasing to look at, and often have guest writers contribute an essay, or a profile of another FReeper.

On Mondays please visit us to see photos of A FEW OF FR'S VETERANS AND ACTIVE MILITARY

If you have a suggestion, or an idea, or if there's a FReeper you would like to see featured, please drop one of us a note in FR mail.

We're having fun and hope you are!
~ Billie, Mama_Bear, dansangel, dutchess, Aquamarine ~

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For the past several weeks, we've been enjoying Mama Bear's cyber tours of various states of the USA, and she will be introducing even more as her time permits, until we've visited them all. As all our hostesses live in a different state, we decided that each of us would feature our own state, and today I'd like to invite you to Waltz Across Texas with me.

Texas is the only state to have the flags of 6 different nations fly over it. They are: Spain, France, Mexico, Republic of Texas, Confederate States, and the United States.

Texas boasts the nation's largest herd of whitetail deer.

Jalapeno pepper jelly originated in Lake Jackson and was first marketed in 1978.

President George W. Bush and former President George H.W. Bush proudly call Texas their home, and two other Presidents were born in Texas: Dwight D. Eisenhower, our 34th President, was born in Denison, Texas, on October 14, 1890; and the 36th President of the United States, Lyndon B. Johnson, was born on August 27, 1908, near Johnson City, Texas.

Texas can lay claim to: 13 Masters titles, 11 U.S. Opens, 6 British Opens, 14 PGAs, 13 U.S. Womens's Opens, 19 Vardon Trophies (awarded annually for lowest scoring average), and 9 Ryder Cup captains.

Texas is the home of other Sports Giants and Champions: The Dallas Cowboys (NFL), Dallas Mavericks (NBA), Dallas Stars (NHL), Dallas Burn (MLS), The Houston Astros (MLB), Houston Rockets (NBA), Houston Comets (WNBA), Houston Texans (NFL), Houston ThunderBears (AFL), San Antonio Spurs (NBA), and The Texas Rangers (MLB).

Six Flags Over Texas, Schlitterbahn Waterpark ........ and the Eiffel Tower. :)

Eiffel Tower, Paris, Texas

There are fourteen other American municipalities named "Paris," and more than a few have chosen to erect Eiffel Tower replicas to pay homage to their French namesake, but no others are adorned with a giant cowboy hat.

But at 60-ft. tall, it is edged out of faux-foreign architecture dominance by a mere five feet. The Eiffel Tower in Paris, TX is 65-ft. tall, built by the local iron worker's union.

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If you thought everyone wore cowboy boots, a 10 gallon stetson hat like J.R. Ewing of Dallas, and had an oil well in their back yard, you would be only partly right. Texas is made up of seven distinct regions; In some of those regions, the stetsons and boots are more at home than others. Let's take a look at the seven regions.

Cowboy boots and stetsons are at home in large parts of this region! I spent several summers at church camp in the Davis Mountains as a young teen. Sunrise, and evening services on top of a mountain - breathtaking!

Lubbock, Amarillo, Wichita Falls.....
Farmland - beautiful rows of wheat and cotton for miles and miles, wide open spaces. Cattle, horses grazing. You'll see cowboy boots and stetsons here. :)

My very favorite of all the Texas regions - I was born in this part of the country and spent my early childhood in Austin. It's the prettiest of all of Texas to me, with crystal clear lakes, rivers and streams, rolling hills, oak trees, bluebonnets, quaint little towns, bed & breakfasts and more. Just driving through this part puts me in a vacation mood.

Oh, Big D! What you do to me! The Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex! My favorite place to shop! Shopping, Amusement Parks, Sports, Dining! It's all there. 'Nuff said. :)

I know least about this region, but the fall colors are spectacular - forests, National Parks every where! A wonderful, scenic drive.

Have spent many vacations in Corpus Christi, Padre Island. Beautiful beaches. And Houston, known most recently as Space City, the largest city in Texas, has so much to offer. Sports, shopping, entertainment, fine dining, night life.

One level below the busy streets of downtown, the Paseo del Rio is San Antonio's premier visitor experience! The popular River Walk is edged by hotels, art and gift shops, restaurants and sidewalk cafes, boutiques, and live music, riverboat cruises. I love this place!

It's like a whole other country. It has roughly 262,000 square miles of land area, and another 5,000 or so square miles of water.

More land is farmed in Texas than in any other state.

The world's third largest telescope is atop Mount Locke in the Davis Mountains.

The nation's longest highway in any one state is U.S. 83. 903 miles from Brownsville to the Panhandle. (Interstate 10 is only 878.7 miles long from Louisiana just east of Orange, Texas, to El Paso.)

The world's largest spring fed swimming pool, with a 62,000 square foot surface (almost 1.5 acres) is Balmorhea State Park in the Big Bend Region. It's one of the largest man-made pools in the United States.

The world's tallest masonry structure (taller than either the Washington Monument or the Statue of Liberty) is the San Jacinto Battlefield Monument.

The world's most complete collection of working World War II aircraft is the Confederate Air Force, located in Midland (home of the Presidents Bush).

And finally, there are over 1400 FReepers who fly the Texas flag on their profile pages - more than any other state. :)

Welcome to Texas, Ya'll!

THIS WEEK'S THREADS 08-04-03 Military Monday

Opinions by our own 'King of Ping' The guy's good, folks!

Thanks, Mixer!

1) Click on the graphic to open the Calendar.
2) Once there you can click on any month and even click to the right to go into next year. Once you are in the month that you joined FR you will need to click on the number in the calendar and then an add item screen will come up.
3) In the next box enter your name in the "Calendar Text" field and then click on submit.
4) If any of the screens fail to load simply click on refresh in your browser and that will usually fix it.
5) If all else fails or simply if you want me to do this for you send me a FReepmail and I will gladly do it for you. ~Mixer

[Dubya]

Tombstone Rubbings

Check out Surprise, Surprise! LOL. How true for me.

[lonestar]

Flyer took this picture of me. I love Flyer.

When I hear THE War Hymn, I march.

My uncle is an Aggie and lives about 6 blocks from Kyle Field. I can hear the band when I'm not occupied. He has squirrels in his back yard. To me they're as bad as longhorns are to him!

[ValerieUSA]

There are lots and lots of trains in Texas. Need to carry a book in the car to read when stopped for a crossing train.

[JustAmy]

"How the *heck* did you end up in FResno? "

A couple of years after my Mom and Dad were married, they decided to look to California for their future. My Dad had an Uncle and a couple of cousins who had already come west. I was born in Fresno and except for a couple of trips when I was very young, I did not return to Texas until about 15 years ago.

I need to make another visit while my Aunt and Uncle are still living. Maybe next year.

[Billie]

Thanks for the tour. I've still got some dance tickets left... May I have the next waltz?

I would be honored to waltz with such a fine-looking, whiskered gent. Especially since you're wearing a white hat. :)

[humblegunner]

that black black stuff which along with natural gas now puts food on my table...

And upon those of many, my FRiend!
Petrochemical Industry is a very good thing and fun, too!

[Calpernia]

>>>Those ducks don't usually live as far north as Waco

LOL, Ducks don't acknowledger borders :)) If they thrieve in an area, they move in.

We even have Muscovy here. They are a species from South America's Rainforest.

[ValerieUSA]

[Dubya]

THE J. H. McCLESKEY NO. I
Agreement was made and drilling commenced. In October 1917, the coal company completed a well on the J. H. McCleskey farm, one mile southwest of Ranger. This well came in as a gusher making 1,600 barrels high gravity oil daily and was the discovery well, which started the rush to Ranger and brought about the development of one of the greatest oil fields in the country. [8] McCleskey No. 1 was drilled under the direction of W. K. Gordon ("Father of the Ranger Field"), Vice President and General Manager of Texas & Pacific Coal Company, the lease owner. Warren Wagner was the contractor, and Frank Champion was the driller when the gusher "roared in." [9]

The Ranger Boom was heard far and wide as evidenced by many articles, ie. one captioned "WAR NEED FOR OIL..." This same article related "The major part of the development work near Ranger, Texas... It was not until after the well at Ranger showed oil that other companies began to enter the field on an important scale." [10] Another statement, "... probably the most spectacular boom ever to have occurred within the United States." [11]

"Spectacular," indeed. Our United States, Great Britain, Italy, France and Russia were in the midst of WWI with Germany and the Central Powers. Russia had supplied the Allies with oil since 1914 and its withdrawal from the conflict in 1917 caused the Allies to have a "critical petroleum shortage, threatening to halt Allied ships, planes, tanks, trucks and locomotives." [12] Earl Curzon declared that the Allies cause had been "floated to victory on a wave of oil" because if it had not been for the great fleets of motor trucks the war could not have been won." [13] The Ranger Boom was to become noted as "The Boom that Won The War." Quote of a late Ranger resident...."Colonel Thompson, Chairman of the Railroad Commission... I've heard him make the statement 'that World War I, the rode to victory on the oil that was produced out of the Ranger Oil field'... And it was one of they great oil booms...because there was a demand for oil" [14]

"The World's Biggest Boom... The wildest, roaringest boom of them all - Ranger! ....Truly, California in 1949, the Klondike, Butte, Spindle top - none of the other great riches, whether produced by gold , silver, copper, or petroleum equaled Ranger." [15] And the J. H. McCleskey No. 1 started it all!

Although short lived the Discovery Well, J. H. McCleskey No. 1, was the birth of the Ranger Oil Boom. This well, that was so important to our country during WWI and, now such an important part of our United States history, was plugged on May 18, 1920. [16]

[Billie]

No problem...I just didn't want such a great Texas champion to go unrecognized by the FINEST!!!

You did a fantastic job on the thread, sweetie!

Thanks again, Feiny! Now that you mentioned the cyclist Champion Extraordinaire, there were no Olympic champions of any kind mentioned either. I was in a hurry this morning and copied the names from only a couple of web sites of sports teams and those golf winners.

[Calpernia]

How did you end up in CA?

[Flyer]

Now that would be a showdown to see!!!

We may come up with something so everyone can play. Stay tuned. . .

[Billie]

I've been there before, too. :) (the San Gabriel River, Georgetown)

[Dubya]

That is for sure.

When I was a kid we lived by a RR track. The coal burning trains would blow their horn and my Mom would run out into back yard and get her fresh washed clothes off the drying line before the smoke could settle on them.

[Billie]

Well, wouldja just look at your Texas roots, JustFRiend!

[JustAmy]

"That's interesting, Amy, to visit where your greatgrandparents were buried. I'm not familiar with where Jack County is. "

Jack County is a couple of counties NW of Dallas.

Over the years, I have visited several cemeteries where I have grandparents buried. Iowa, Missouri, Texas, Ohio and Oklahoma. Before I can visit others, I need to do some more research.

[Billie]

Thanks, Dog Gone! Really COOOOOLD water, Balmorhea!!! But so is Barton Springs in Austin! Takes your breath away when you first jump in the spring-fed pools, huh?!

[JustAmy]

I should have pinged you to post #264

[ValerieUSA]

Howdy gunner, sorry you missed the HOT freeper picnic last month.

[Billie]

Hey, there you are! Hi, gunner!