Portal:Texas

Texas
Texas
State
	State of Texas
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	Map of the United States with Texas highlighted

The Texas Portal

Texas (/ˈtɛksəs/ ^ⓘ TEK-səss) is a state in the United States. Located in the south-central part of the country, it borders Louisiana, Arkansas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico. It also borders Mexico along the Rio Grande, and has a coastline on the Gulf of Mexico. Covering 268,596 square miles (695,660 km²) and with an estimated population of over 31.7 million residents in 2025, it is the second-largest state by both area and population. Texas is nicknamed the "Lone Star State" for the single star on its flag, symbolic of its former status as an independent country, the Republic of Texas.

Spain was the first European country to claim and control Texas, followed by brief French colonization. The territory became part of Mexico after its independence from Spain in 1821. Increasing tensions between settlers and the Mexican government culminated in the Texas Revolution, which included the Battle of the Alamo, and led to the establishment of the independent Republic of Texas in 1836. In 1845, Texas joined the United States as the 28th state, which helped spark the Mexican–American War. Texas remained a slave state until the American Civil War, during which it seceded from the Union and joined the Confederate States. After the war and the restoration of its representation in the federal government, Texas entered a prolonged period of economic stagnation before undergoing substantial economic growth in the 20th century.

The economy of Texas is highly diversified with major industries including energy, agriculture, technology, manufacturing, and aerospace. It has the second-highest gross state product among U.S. states and has led the country in state export revenue since 2002. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex and Greater Houston, while Austin is the state capital. Texas contains diverse landscapes spanning the Gulf Coast, Piney Woods, plains, hills, deserts, and mountains, reflecting its large size and varied topography. (Full article...)

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The first page of William Barret Travis's letter, To the People of Texas & All Americans in the World

To the People of Texas & All Americans in the World, commonly referred to as the Victory or Death letter, is an open letter written on February 24, 1836, by William B. Travis, commander of the Texian forces at the Battle of the Alamo, to settlers in Mexican Texas. The letter is renowned as a "declaration of defiance" and a "masterpiece of American patriotism", and forms part of the history education of Texas schoolchildren.

On February 23, the Alamo Mission in San Antonio, Texas had been besieged by Mexican forces led by General Antonio López de Santa Anna. Fearing that his small group of men could not withstand an assault, Travis wrote this letter seeking reinforcements and supplies from supporters. The letter closes with Travis's vow of "Victory or Death!", an emotion which has been both praised and derided by historians. (Full article...)

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In 1906, aged about 30

William Paul Brady (February 12, 1876 – February 27, 1943) was an American lawyer. From 1909 to around 1914, he served as the first district attorney for Texas' 70th judicial district, and from 1917 to 1919 he was the judge for the newly created El Paso County Court at Law. Brady prosecuted several high-profile murder cases as a district attorney, including of Agnes Orner, and in a death-penalty case that has since been termed a "legal lynching" of a Mexican boy charged with killing a white woman.

Brady was born to a pioneering Austin family and grew up there. An older brother, John W. Brady, also became a Texas lawyer and judge; a niece, Caroline Brady, would go on to become a philologist. Will Brady spent three years after graduation as a county school teacher, then ran for county superintendent. He won and ultimately served two terms, from 1900 to 1904. Brady thereafter obtained a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Texas and moved to Pecos, where after several years in private practice he was appointed district attorney by Texas Governor Thomas Mitchell Campbell. Brady moved to El Paso in 1915 and resumed private practice, but was soon named judge, this time by Governor James E. Ferguson. Brady resigned in 1919 and moved to California to pursue interests in oil; he spent the remainder of his career as an oil attorney, and then with the National Farm Loan Association. (Full article...)

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September 10, 2026 – Economic impact of the 2026 Iran war: Crude oil prices in the United States, including from Brent Crude and West Texas Intermediate, reach US$100, the highest since May, amidst the country's renewed tensions with Iran. (CNBC)

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State symbols

Flower	Bluebonnet
Motto	Friendship
Nickname	The Lone Star State
Tree	Pecan
Dog	Blue Lacy
Bird	Mockingbird
Fish	Guadalupe bass
Flying Mammal	Mexican free-tailed bat
Reptile	Texas Horned Lizard

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Credit: User:Joyous!
Big Tex has presided over every Texas State Fair since 1952.

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Richardson is a city in Dallas and Collin counties in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 United States census, the city had a total population of 119,469. Richardson is an inner suburb of the city of Dallas.

It is home to the University of Texas at Dallas and the Telecom Corridor, with a high concentration of telecommunications companies. More than 5,000 businesses have operations within Richardson's 28 square miles (73 km²), including many of the world's largest telecommunications and networking companies, such as AT&T, Verizon, Cisco Systems, Samsung, ZTE, MetroPCS, Texas Instruments, Qorvo, and Fujitsu. Richardson's largest employment base is provided by the insurance industry, with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas's headquarters, a regional hub for the insurance company GEICO, regional offices for UnitedHealth Group#UnitedHealthcare, and one of State Farm Insurance's three national regional hubs located in the community. (Full article...)

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General images

The following are images from various Texas-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1Territories of some Native American tribes in Texas ~1500CE (from History of Texas)
Image 2First day of passenger service, Dallas & Sherman Interurban Railroad, 1908 (from History of Texas)
Image 3Stephen F. Austin, known as the "Father of Texas." (from History of Texas)
Image 4Sam Houston served as the first and third president of the Republic of Texas and seventh governor of Texas. (from History of Texas)
Image 51913 cotton harvest in East Texas (from History of Texas)
Image 6Company D, Texas Rangers, at Realitos in 1887 (from History of Texas)
Image 7The U.S. and Texas flags at the Texas State Capitol. (from History of Texas)
Image 8Big Tex, the mascot of the State Fair of Texas since 1952 (from Culture of Texas)
Image 9The Praetorian Building in Dallas, completed 1909, was the first skyscraper west of the Mississippi and the tallest in Texas. (from History of Texas)
Image 10Boom periods of the four major industries that built the early Texas economy. (from History of Texas)
Image 11Spanish Texas in 1794 (from History of Texas)
Image 12Texas in 1718, Guillaume de L'Isle map, approximate state area highlighted, northern boundary was indefinite. (from History of Texas)
Image 13Mission Concepcion is one of the San Antonio missions which is part of a National Historic Landmark. (from History of Texas)
Image 14The Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad – the "Katy" – was the first railroad to enter Texas from the north (from History of Texas)
Image 15Austin (from List of Texas metropolitan areas)
Image 16McAllen (from List of Texas metropolitan areas)
Image 17The Viceroyalty of New Spain in 1819 (from History of Texas)
Image 18René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle founded the French colony in Texas. (from History of Texas)
Image 19Mexican Texas in 1833 (from History of Texas)
Image 20The Spanish flag of Burgundy. (from History of Texas)
Image 21“Music of the Plains” (mural study, Kilgore, Texas, 1939) by Xavier Gonzalez. (from Culture of Texas)
Image 22A factory worker in Fort Worth, Texas, 1942 (from History of Texas)
Image 23French Texas in 1685 consisted of Fort St. Louis on Matagorda Bay. (from History of Texas)
Image 24President John F. Kennedy in the presidential limousine, minutes before his assassination (from History of Texas)
Image 25The "Lone Star" Belle, postcard, around 1908. (from Culture of Texas)
Image 26Spanish missions within the boundaries of what is now the state of Texas. (from History of Texas)
Image 27Kyle Field, a football stadium located on the campus of Texas A&M University, which is the largest stadium in Texas. (from Culture of Texas)
Image 28Texas Counties and urban areas (from List of Texas metropolitan areas)
Image 29A plate of Texan barbecue including beef brisket, sausage, potato salad, toast and dill pickles, served at Goldee's Barbecue. (from Culture of Texas)
Image 30The Republic of Texas. The present-day outlines of the U.S. states (white lines) are superimposed on the boundaries of 1836–1845. (from History of Texas)
Image 31Captain Charles A. May's squadron of the 2d Dragoons slashes through the Mexican Army lines. Resaca de la Palma, Texas, May 1846 (from History of Texas)
Image 32The French flag of the Bourbons (from History of Texas)
Image 33Comancheria before 1850. (from History of Texas)