Handy Texas Answer Book

James L. Haley is one of Texas’s most distinguished historians. His first book, The Buffalo War, remains the definitive history of the last Indian war on the South Plains and has been in print for forty years. His biography, Sam Houston, won nine different awards, including the Tullis Prize of the Texas State Historical Association, the Spur Award of the Western Writers of America, and the Book Award of the Philosophical Society of Texas. His 650-page compendium of Texas history, Passionate Nation, won the T. R. Fehrenbach Book Award of the Texas Historical Commission. Most recently, after ghost writing the memoirs of famous Texas Ranger Joaquin Jackson, he completed a history of the Texas Supreme Court for the University of Texas Press; his latest books, The Shores of Tripoli (2016), A Darker Sea (2017), and the upcoming The Devil in Paradise, are in the Bliven Putnam Naval Adventure Series for G. P. Putnam’s Sons. Haley grew up in Fort Worth, graduated summa cum laude from the University of Texas at Arlington, and attended the UT School of Law in Austin. He resides in Austin, Texas.

• Introduction Chapter 1 Overview/Stats, Facts, FiguresChapter 2 Early Texas: Native Americans to the Revolution 1528–1836Chapter 3 The Republic of Texas: 1836–1845Chapter 4 The Antebellum State to Civil War: 1845–1865Chapter 5 Reconstruction to Urbanization: 1865–1900Chapter 6 Modern Texas: 1900 to the PresentChapter 7 Nature, Parks, ClimateChapter 8 Natural and Economic RegionsChapter 9 Cities and TownsChapter 10 Economy and BusinessChapter 11 PoliticsChapter 12 SportsChapter 13 ReligionChapter 13 Culture, Festivals, Quirky, Folklore, Myths, ColloquialismsChapter 14 Notable Sons and DaughtersAppendix A: Texas’s GovernorsAppendix B: Sites and AttractionsTimelineBibliographyIndex

“Popular Texas historian James Haley … has produced another fascinating examination of the Lone Star State. … Students of Lone Star history will undoubtedly enjoy this engaging volume.” – Texas Escapes“Awwww, hell yeah! This book is like "Everything You Always Wanted To Know About the Lone Star State … But Were Too Busy Swillin' Queso To Ask."” – Austin Chronicle“… easy to read cover-to-cover. … highly recommended for public and school libraries …” – American Reference Books Annual“… covers common and obscure bits of Texas “history, people, myths, culture and trivia,” including politics, oil, cattle, and art … A strong choice … with almost 1,000 answers providing readable information on hundreds of topics.” – Library Journal“… answers about 950 questions about Texas and its population and demographics, history and politics, economy, regions, business, religion, education, environment and nature, sports, recreation, events, language, points of interest, legends, notable individuals, and major cities …” — Book News