Name: Tragedy and Triumph on the Texas Plains
Brand: Chuck Lanehart
SKU: 9781467149037
Price: 21.99 USD
Availability: InStock

Tragedy and Triumph on the Texas Plains

9781467149037

$21.99

Out on the Texas Plains, wrangling with history resembles taking in the sunset--a stampede of splendor and shadow all at once. Roam an Ohio-sized patch of prairie and take stock of the heroic tasks and moral dilemmas facing the unforgettable characters who called West Texas home. Ben Hogan sinks a putt with the focus of the Clovis man who hunted mammoth in the same spot thousands of years before. Lubbock's largest lawsuit runs its interminable course. And a starving Roy Rogers makes a quick meal of jackrabbit on the Llano Estacado. Chuck Lanehart gathers statesmen and journalists, outlaws and entertainers, in these profiles of the Texas Plains.

Lost Fort Worth

9781626192355

$21.99

From the humble beginnings of a frontier army camp, Fort Worth transformed into a city as cattle drives, railroads, oil and national defense drove its economy. During the tremendous growth, the landscape and cultural imprint of the city changed drastically, and much of Cowtown was lost to history. Witness the birth of western swing music and the death of a cloud dancer. See mansions of the well-heeled and saloons of the well-armed. Meet two gunfighters, one flamboyant preacher, one serial killer and one very short subway carrying passengers back in time to discover more of Fort Worth. Author Mike Nichols presents a colorful history tour from the North Side to the South Side's Battle of Buttermilk Junction.

Harvey Houses of Texas

9781626195240

$21.99

On the eve of the twentieth century, small-town Texas was still wild country lacking in the commodities and cultural centers of larger cities. This changed, however, with the arrival of the Santa Fe rail line, followed quickly by the Harvey House. Established in Kansas by English immigrant Fred Harvey, Harvey Houses could be found throughout the Southwest and adjoined local depots in sixteen Texas towns. Found in every corner of the state, Harvey Houses were not just restaurants and hotels for weary, hungry travelers but were also bustling social centers and often the only commercial outlet for the communities that developed around them. Author Rosa Walston Latimer tells the history of hospitality the "Fred Harvey way" in turn-of-the-century Texas, woven from personal stories of the famous "Harvey Girls" and other employees of Texas Harvey Houses.

Guy Town by Gaslight:

9781626194458

$21.99

Crime and vice plagued Austin after the Civil War, and Guy Town was a red-light hub with a most curious legacy. Today's pleasure-seeking visitors to the Warehouse District walk on top of Guy Town--the chic neighborhood of today is built on the most decadent and deadly area of the city's past. With the old county courthouse at its core, the district rose from the Colorado River up to Fifth Street and spanned from Congress Avenue to Shoal Creek, infesting Austin's eclectic First Ward neighborhood. Guy Town was a haven for notorious madams, prostitutes, druggies and drunkards lost to history, as well as names still remembered--Ben Thompson, O. Henry and Johnny Ringo roamed its streets looking for a good time. From murderers to con men, crooked cops and more, meet the cast of characters that gave Guy Town its reputation in author Richard Zelade's lurid account of the Capital City's historic underbelly.

Haunted Austin

9781609490409

$19.99

A killer lurks in the dark streets, victimizing servant girls throughout 1885, and Austin becomes the first American city to claim a serial killer. The spirits of convicts wander amidst the manicured grounds of the Texas State Capitol while inside a public servant assassinated in 1903 still haunts the corridors. These are just a few of the strange and frightening tales of Haunted Austin. Within these pages lies evidence that the frontier bravado legendary in so many Texas men and women lives on long after death. Author Jeanine Plumer explores the sinister history of the city and attempts to answer the question: why do so many ghosts linger in Austin?

Party Weird:

9781626196520

$21.99

In 1839, Texas officials toasted their new capital of Austin, and its citizens never ran out of excuses for revelry. Austinites celebrate their homegrown and vibrant culture, renowned and innovative music, street life and collective quirkiness with pride. While world-class events now call the city home, in a culture that eschews conformity at every turn, Austin's underground social gatherings are what truly earn it bragging rights. Discover the grass-roots origins of the enigmatic eccentricity that has drawn people from all corners of Texas and now from the whole world. Feel the beat of drum circles at Eeyore's Birthday Party in April, sling puns at the annual O. Henry Pun-Off or share a meal with strangers at the monthly Perpetual Potluck Picnic--or Jim O's, as the locals say. Author Howie Richey explores the offbeat, exuberant culture and history of the city that started with a party that just didn't stop.

Haunted Plano, Texas

9781467140386

$21.99

Plano's old homes and businesses are rife with haunted history. Explore eerie urban legends like the Goat Man, the Clown Threat, and Ranch 111, where devil worshipers performed their rituals. The Evaporating Apparition spooked the staff at the Art Centre Theatre, while the grumpy spirit of an old rancher stalks the Masonic Lodge. Some specters are harmless, such as the Giggling Ghost, a little girl in the Cox Building with a penchant for peanut butter and pranks. Other figures own a more sinister reputation. The Witch Lady of Plano was feared by city youth and monitored by the FBI. Mary Jacobs examines the ghostly fallout of Plano's darkest moments, from the smallpox epidemic to the gruesome Muncey family murders.

Details at Ten:

9781609494155

$21.99

As broadcast news came of age in the turbulent decades of the 1950s and '60s, North Texas reporter Bert Shipp was on the front lines. While television changed the way Texas and the world witnessed history, Shipp's Dallas/Fort Worth coverage reported stories of both national and local importance. Whether in the media race to cover the Kennedy assassination, on a mission to Laos to help recover a secret list of prisoners of war while on a mission in Laos or highlighting the boy who had no shoes for Christmas, Shipp's accounts of chronicling the news are fascinating and often hilarious. Join this award-winning journalist as he recalls harrowing, humorous and true behind-the-scenes stories of those early days in Texas television news.

North Texas Beer:

9781626194328

$23.99

Texas is historically a large beer-drinking state. Unlike the brewing heritage of the Central Texas German settlements, the North Texas area--Dallas, Fort Worth and the cities of the surrounding Metroplex--always approached local beers from more of a commercial standpoint. Though local brewing dates back to 1857, early, larger brewers from other states influenced those in Dallas and Fort Worth before and throughout the twentieth century. After the opening of the first craft brewery in the state (and sixth in the nation) in Plano in 1982, North Texas breweries began to flourish in later years and today find a consuming public fiercely devoted to their local brews. Join authors Paul Hightower and Brian L. Brown for a complete yet refreshing look at the history, business and fun of beer in North Texas.

Camp Verde

9781609493868

$21.99

The Verde Valley the seemingly easy route to West Texas was in fact a land of peril, adventure, and near mythic heroes. Historic Camp Verde has long been a strategic stronghold guarding the pass, the valley and the many trails converging at this river crossing. As frontiersman and settlers pushed through the pass and Native Americans responded with violent force, the famed Texas Rangers attempted to control the region. Officially established in 1856, the camp would become the testing ground for the Army's Camel Experiment and an outpost for Robert E. Lee's legendary Second U.S. Cavalry. Join local historian Joseph Luther as he narrates the tumultuous and uniquely Texan history of Camp Verde.

Cleburne Baseball

9781467137010

$21.99

Shortly after Cleburne landed the largest railroad shops west of the Mississippi, it set its sights on securing a professional baseball team. Against the odds, Cleburne became a Texas League town in 1906. After the first championship, the Railroaders loaded a train and left Cleburne. The town's professional teams would amass two championships, three pennants and several legendary major league players, including Tris Speaker, before disappearing. Despite lacking a professional club, the town continued to field teams at all levels, until the Railroaders made their triumphant return in 2017. Scott Cain shares a century of Cleburne baseball, including the cowboys who gunned down fly balls to intimidate umps, the pro team that played the Chicago White Sox and the city councilman who was a scorekeeper for the Negro Leagues in the 1950s.

Driving Southwest Texas:

9781609490720

$21.99

West of Austin lies Big Bend Country. A region of rich history that still resembles the old frontier, Southwest Texas epitomizes the mystique and allure of this grand state. From the sweeping desert vistas to the canyons of Big Bend National Park, the geography itself is nothing short of incredible. Whether it's discovering historic Fort Davis, sharing in Annie Riggs's legacy or watching the Marfa Lights, a treasure awaits every traveler in this land. Join historian and travel writer Byron Browne as he and his wife, Angie, explore the sights and stories of this unique and charming piece of the Lone Star State

Encyclopedia of Early Texas History

9781626194540

$14.99

In this age of hustle and bustle, Texans cannot afford to flounder about unawares of where to turn for information most urgent and necessary as their own history. What you want--nay, what you need--is the encyclopedia herein. The patriot will find stories of heroism and warning, the student will discover annals of valuable learning and the curious will discover purpose renewed in historical origin. With educational and entertaining illustrations, the reader will at once be transported back to historic times and doubtless become the "go-to" guy or gal for Texas trivia. From the arrival of Aguayo to the zeal of Zavala, each page contains a morsel of valuable history of the great state of Texas. Texan and scholar Stephen Biles has collected an invaluable source of information so exciting and excellent that it has been sized to fit within your pocket or purse--after all, one never knows when history might call.

Yellow Fever on Galveston Island

9781467146555

$21.99

Jan Johnson provides a definitive account of Galveston's fight against outbreaks of Yellow Fever, which transformed an island paradise into the City of Dreadful Death.

In the summer of Galveston's founding year, a mysterious malady accompanied by black vomit descended upon the inhabitants. Names for the devastating plague came quick and fast as the body count rose. Saffron Scourge. Bronze John. Yellow Jack. Yellow Fever. The disease's cause and cure remained elusive, as did the medical institutions Galveston would need treat the illness. Four thousand souls perished in nine epidemics between 1839 and 1867. By the time of Galveston's final Yellow Fever outbreak in 1903, however, residents were better informed and equipped. Discover the key figures and pivotal events of the island city's experience with the mosquito-borne disease.

Football and Integration in Plano, Texas

9781626195011

$21.99

The year 1964 was momentous for civil rights as Congress passed the Twenty-fourth Amendment and Texas's own Lyndon B. Johnson unveiled his plan for the Great Society. That same year, the Plano school district integrated, setting an example for the state and nation. The tightknit community banded together through a language fluent to everyone--football. The Wildcats had few winning seasons and no state titles at that time, but with hard work and a trailblazing spirit, coaches Tom Gray and John Clark led the integrated team all the way to state championship victory in 1965. The Plano Conservancy for Historic Preservation, Inc. presents the inspiring story of the Wildcat fight for the title that made Plano a better place to live.

Football and Integration in Plano, Texas

Big Bend Tales

9781609493301

$21.99

Travel deeper into the Texas outback with writer-historian Mike Cox as he recounts the lesser-known stories from Alpine, Fort Davis and Marfa. Revisit the grandeur of Alpine's Holland Hotel, peer through the telescope at the McDonald Observatory and dip your toes in the water hole at Ernst Tinaja, if you dare. Travel back to a time when the Comanche Trail stretched one thousand miles from Kansas to Mexico, making the Big Bend difficult to defend and impossible to resist trying. Celebrate Cinco de Mayo, the anniversary of Benito Juarez's decisive defeat of the French at Pueblo in 1867. If nothing else, come for the lore and history that is as extensive in the Big Bend region as the mountain passes and desert stretches themselves.