Texas is a proud state. We boast that everything is bigger in Texas (and it is) but here are other facts about Texas you may or may not know.
1. The state’s name comes from the Caddo word “tejas” meaning “friends.”
2. Dr Pepper was invented in Waco, Texas in 1885 of which I am glad to partake of much to often.
3. The Texas State Capitol in Austin is taller than the U.S. Capitol in Washington and is the only State Flag that can fly as high as the U.S. flag.
4. State Fair of Texas, which is held in annually in Dallas, is the largest state fair in the U.S. by annual attendance.
5. Texas is home to the world’s largest population of bats – with over 100 million. 1.5 million can be seen at sunset each day from Congress Avenue Bridge in Austin & 15 – 20 million in Bracken Cave near San Antonio known as Guinness World Records as the largest bat colony in the world.
6. Greatest length from border to border is 801 miles, width is 773 miles and has 367 miles of coastline. Dalhart (in the panhandle) is closer to six other state capitals than to Texas’s capital in Austin.
7. Texas was once an actual independent nation and the only state to become a state through a treaty not annexation.
8. Texas is the second-largest state in the U.S. by area and population.
9. King Ranch in Kingsville is so big it spans over 6 counties and is bigger than the entire state of Rhode Island.
10. “Don’t Mess With Texas” was an anti-littering campaign in 1985 by the Texas Department of Transportation and has since become an iconic saying associated with Texas Pride.
11. The first words spoken from the moon was “Houston” as in “Houston, Tranquility Base here. The Eagle has landed.”
