Even if you’re a tea-totaller, the Texas wine industry is one to take note of. Rising from humble beginnings, Texas now ranks as the 5th largest wine-producing state.
It’s not too surprising, perhaps, to find vineyards in the Hill Country where many German immigrants settled, but vineyards can be found in almost every region.
Grapes are harvested in the fall. Contact a winery near you for a great field trip!
Texas does sport Autumn color, but you may have to get out a bit to enjoy it!
This is a great time of year to plan a family outing to one of our great state parks. After a nature hike, how about a picnic or cook-out, complete with s’mores? Don’t forget the marshmallows!
Ask anyone what they think of when they think of Texas, and chances are they’ll say, “Cowboys.” This month, two of the biggest cowboys around are throwing two of the biggest shindigs in Texas!
Big Tex welcomes you to the State Fair of Texas in Dallas (Sep 24-Oct 17). Tons of exhibits, a livestock show, great entertainment, and that none-like-it State Fair atmosphere make this event fun for the whole family.
For a savory sampling of cowboy culture, try the Red Steagall Cowboy Gathering & Western Swing Festival (Oct 22-24). Ranch rodeo, chuckwagon cooking, wagon train and trail rides, cowboy music and poetry competitions, and more–right in the heart of downtown Fort Worth. Well worth the trip if you can make it!
And if you can’t, maybe there’s a fair or rodeo in a town near you. No better place to get a taste of Texas!
Autumn is the time to pick cotton in Texas.
With the drought this year, it may be difficult to find a field being harvested, but if you see one, pull over and watch for a while as the big machines comb the rows, tossing the bolls into huge hoppers. They’ll compress the cotton, bale it, and mark it for the gins.
If there’s a gin in your area, this would be a great time to inquire about a field trip.
Cotton is a major agricultural product in Texas. The simple fact that it may be difficult to find much this year is an indication of how dependent farmers are on water and how much it hurts our economy when there is little rain.
…and it starts this weekend!
The State Fair of Texas features exhibitions, demonstrations, music and cultural events, livestock shows, women’s and children’s cooking and handcrafts, and a whole lot more. Special tickets are available for students and homeschool families (though they go quickly. You might need to put this on your list for next year.)
The Fair is an event, though, and deep fried Twinkies–that’s a cultural experience, right?
Saturday, September 24, 2011
If you live in the Texas Panhandle (specifically, near Levelland TX) you have an opportunity this weekend to visit several ranches and other sites of historical interest at Texas’ Last Frontier Ranch Heritage Tour. (Not that this is Texas’ last tour of frontier ranching heritage. It’s actually the 7th annual tour, and there’ll likely be another one next year, but ranches are Texas’ last frontier. You understood what they meant, right?)
Anyway, if you’ve got $75 burning a hole in your pocket and a hankering to see the T-Bar Ranch Headquarters, a grave from the 1877 Buffalo Soldier Expedition, and many other sites of interest, email johnhope58@gmail.com or phone (806) 894-4062 for more information. Ticket price includes a full day of events (on a comfortably air-conditioned bus), a book about the tour sites, lunch, and a barbecue dinner with western music and entertainment.
As I looked for info on this event, I happened to run across Glenn’s Texas History Blog. Even if the ranch tour isn’t something you’re interested in, be sure to visit Glenn’s blog for a wealth of other Texas trips and trivia.
The school year is a busy time. Sometimes it’s hard to squeeze in everything you hoped to do between September and May. That’s why I’m glad summer’s coming–
A Texas field trip is easy to plan and easy on the budget. You can take a day trip, a weekend, or a whole week to enjoy something special.
For ideas, click “Field Trips” in the list of categories in the sidebar to review Field Trip Ideas in the News Around Texas archives, or look under “Field Trips” in the Teacher’s Tips index of each Discover Texas volume.
(Shhh…don’t tell the kids it’s educational!)
In May 1690 Spanish soldiers escorted priests to the banks of San Pedro Creek to begin building Mission San Francisco de los Tejas–an outreach to the Hasinai Caddo.
In terms of measurable results, the mission was a failure. After struggling for a few years, the priests re-established the mission in San Antonio, closer to other mission projects. East Texas was just too remote–too far from support and supplies.
BUT the trail the priests and their escorts blazed, El Camino Real, became an important travel route, visible to this day in east Texas.
Field Trip Idea: Download this brochure that tells about El Camino Real.
commemorates Mexico’s victory over France at the Battle of Puebla on May 5, 1862.
Puebla is deep in the heart of Mexico.
The battle occurred long after Texas won its independence from Mexico.
The celebration is not a particularly important holiday in Mexico (outside of Pueblo, of course). This is NOT Mexico’s Independence Day. Mexico won their independence from Spain on September 16th.
BUT in Texas, Cinco de Mayo is a day to celebrate Hispanic heritage.
Field Trip Idea: Many cities sponsor parades and cultural exhibits to mark el Cinco de Mayo. Plan to attend a celebration near you. If you can’t find a local celebration, why not celebrate with a traditional meal? You may even want to experiment with recipes you can make at home.
The Texas rebellion didn’t come to a head until March-April 1836, but six years earlier (April 6, 1830) Mexico passed a law banning further immigration from the United States for all the reasons we discussed here.
The Civil War did not begin until 1861, but the issues of slavery and states’ rights had been debated for years.
Wherever there are human beings, there will be differences of opinion. But how boring would the world be if everyone thought and acted just the same? It would be like trying to paint with just one color.
Field Trip Idea: The Institute of Texan Cultures in San Antonio tells the story of all the people groups who immigrated to Texas–a tapestry of cultures.
