Check this page every month for the latest audio from W.F. Strong’s reading of his Footnotes in Texas History column, which also can be heard on the Texas Standard radio program.
Vegan Panhandlers
Demonyms across Texas bend and break the rules of language. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
A Town Called Toadsuck
Long removed from maps, it was home for a governor as colorful as its name. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Payback Time
When a Texas rancher was conned, he spent years tracking down the swindlers. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Republic’s End
‘Many a manly cheek was wet with tears’ when the Texian flag was lowered for the last time. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
The Green Carpet
The grand opening of Houston’s lavish and large—but short-lived—Shamrock Hotel. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
How Texas Became a Desert
Films shot in Arizona, Utah and Spain gave the world some wrong impressions. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Appraising the Texas Landscape
When Frederick Law Olmsted, designer of New York’s Central Park, first laid eyes on a new state. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
It Still Reigns
At 50, Elmer Kelton’s ‘The Time It Never Rained’ remains ‘a book of the heart.’ Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
A Page of the Past
Traces of real-life Texans ride through McMurtry’s Lonesome Dove. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Second Sacking
Six years after the Alamo, Mexican troops twice stormed San Antonio. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Special Delivery
How a crudely scrawled message 300 years ago saved its sender’s life. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Redwater Christening
East Texas residents washed away their sins—and their town’s original name. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Of Birds, Butterflies and Brides
Quinta Mazatlan and its massive adobe mansion remain a McAllen jewel. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Rescue of the Lost Battalion
How Japanese American units saved Texans in World War II. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Priceless Passage
The Port Mansfield Channel led to the Gulf—and a 400-year-old Spanish treasure. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
A Brief but Determined Texan
Samuel Walker’s violent adventures became the stuff of legend. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Everything Was Bigger …
Lucky folks in modern-day Wyoming were Texans in 1845. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Bison at the Brink
When just 23 were left in Yellowstone National Park, a Texan revived the herd. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Good on Paper
Fueled by booze and a legendary cocktail napkin, Southwest Airlines took off and never looked back. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
The Most Glorious Autumn
Tom Landry’s finest season came in Mission, years before his reign in Dallas. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Colorado’s Texas Bridge
The Royal Gorge Bridge, highest in America, was built and owned by Texans. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
A Deep Dive
Explorers map the recent history of the state’s deepest ancient cave. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Two-Fisted Law and Order
Judge Roy Bean made the rules and found fame in his remote corner of West Texas. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
The Inside Track
Railroads scattered—and united—early communities across the state. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Her Majesty’s Visit
Queen Elizabeth II’s 1991 trip to Texas was a momentous occasion. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Joined by a Fence
How rural America turned barbed wire into telephone lines. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Proving Ground
Future presidents crossed the Wild Horse Desert together on a military mission. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
France’s Beef? Pigs
Ill-mannered hogs ruin France’s attempt at a relationship with the newly independent Texas. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
The Hero of Cinco de Mayo
A Texan named Zaragoza led the battle against the French in Mexico. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
He Gave Us the Stars
An eccentric banker funded the McDonald Observatory against family wishes. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
Toeing the Line
How a Washington connection helped Texas keep a 900-square-mile slice of New Mexico. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
A Name That Sticks
Falfurrias—the butter and the town—emerged from South Texas’ King Ranch. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
The Scariest Bridge in Texas
The steep Rainbow Bridge connecting Port Arthur and Orange is a nightmare for some. Read the story here, and find more of W.F.’s Stories From Texas at Texas Standard.
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