Among the Trees
When the four-day Texas State Forest Festival kicks off September 17 in Lufkin, it continues a tradition that began in 1938. The event, in the heart of the Pineywoods, features a variety of activities, including a carnival, barbecue competition, music and chain saw carving.
In 2022, Texas sawmills produced enough lumber to make two-by-fours that could reach the moon and back.
Did you know? Texas has 59 million acres of forestland, more than any other state except Alaska. About 93% of that is privately owned.
Hold Your Horses
Labor Day weekend marks the 50th anniversary of Westfest, a salute to the Czech heritage in West, a town north of Waco. The event, September 4–6 this year, is a primary fundraiser for several nonprofits.
You might say Westfest was a home run from day one. The main attraction in 1976 was a donkey baseball game, an outrageous activity in which all the players rode donkeys. The competition this year is just for humans—a Kolache 5K Challenge.
John Quincy Adams
‘A School History of the United States’ (1894)
Hair Apparent
Only five elected American presidents—John Adams, John Quincy Adams, Martin Van Buren, James Garfield and Dwight Eisenhower—were bald or balding. Considering that 85% of men suffer hair loss by age 50, that’s perhaps an astonishing record. Something to think about on National Bald is Beautiful Day, September 13.
US Officially Named
On September 9, 1776, the Second Continental Congress adopted a new name for what had been called the United Colonies, declaring the nation the United States of America.
