Texas Fact, Fiction & Myths.

Texas Facts, Myths & Legends

Dr Pepper

A favorite in Texas, where it was invented in 1885, Dr Pepper is now the 5th best selling soft drink in America. The name, however, does not refer to the Waco pharmacist who whipped it up. That was Charles Alderton, who started out serving it to regulars at Morrison's Old Corner Drug, where he worked. He named it after Dr Pepper in Rural Retreat, Virginia. The pharmacist there had given Alderton's boss, Mr. Morrison, his first job. According to folklore, the real Dr Pepper refused to let Morrison court his daughter. However, according to company spokesman, Jim Ball, that story is fiction, as the girl in question was only 8 yrs old at the time. Rural Retreat has always billed itself as the home of the Dr Pepper drink. Ball notes that historical records for the Virginia pharmacy (which closed in 1994) contain no reference to sales of the drink til the 1920s. In 1988, Dr Pepper merged with St Louis based 7-up, forming the 3rd largest soft drink company in the US with HQs in Dallas. Note: the "Dr" is never spelled out nor followed by a period. At one time the period existed, but by about 1950 it had vanished from the company's promotional art. Visit Dr Pepper's website by clicking HERE.

Bluebonnets

The bluebonnet was proclaimed the state flower by the state legislature on March 7, 1901. The flower blooms during the month of April. Legend says a Comanche girl sacrificed her doll, which had blue feathers and black eyes; so the Great Spirit would end the terrible drought. The ashes were strewn to the 4 winds. The next day it rained and the blue flowers with black centers appeared. Many years later these flowers were called bluebonnets because they resembled the bonnets worn by pioneer women.

Bluebonnet Margarine

Bluebonnet margarine was created in Texas and named for the state flower *well duh!* This lasted until the company began selling their product nationwide. Fearing a regional name would would prevent consumers from buying the product, the company changed to a woman's bonnet for their artwork.

Chisholm Trail

The most famous trail in the Old West known even to Easterners, but the man for who it was named after NEVER drove a single cow up it. Jesse Chisholm was an Indian trader who, by 1865 had traveled so frequently through Indian territory (what is now Wichita, KS, South through Oklahoma to the red river) that his well-worn wagon tracks were followed North by cattleman. Eventually it became so popular with cattleman that it grew to travel through Texas to the Rio Grande. Some residents of Paris, TX have disputed that the spelling should be "Chisum" after John Chisum or (Jinglebob John after his ranch and brand) a pioneering cowman. John Chisum was one of the first Texans to drive cattle. He sent his first herd with an equally well-known cowman, Charles Goodnight in 1866; a year after Jesse Chisholm. However, Chisum's cattle went Texas to New Mexico, NOT Kansas, and was knows as the Goodnight-Loving trail.

Fajitas *YUM!!*

NOT a Mexican food, because fajitas are not found on the interior of Mexico. Fajitas are truly a Tex-Mex creation combining Texas' beloved beef & BBQ style cooking with flour tortillas, onion, bell pepper, pico de gallo, and guacamole. The invention of the fajita is lost in the mists of time. Skirt steak is usually the cut of meat used for fajitas because in the Rio Grande Valley in the 30's and 40's folks couldn't afford more expensive cuts. The strip steak was considered a table trimming and not a good cut of meat. It was usually ground up by butchers into hamburger meat before the creation of the fajita. Oftentimes, it was just thrown away. Fajitas are ALWAYS made with skirt steak, and BBQ'ed. Some places have chicken fajitas.. but according to my Godfather in San Antonio, "Chickens don't have fajitas!!!" And he would get so mad about the very idea of chicken fajitas! Fajitas are ALWAYS served with flour tortillas NOT corn. Many Texans think that the word "fajita" means "little skirt," but actually the Spanish word faja means band or strap. This refers to the shape of the elongated cut of meat before it's grilled and sliced into strips. The Spanish for skirt is falda.

State Holidays

Texas has 5 state holidays in addition to federal holidays; state employees get paid for a day off. Some schools also celebrate these holidays too. They are: Martin Luther King's birthday Jan. 15, but celebrated the third Monday in March. Texas Independence Day on March 2nd, San Jacinto Day on April 21st (also known as Texas Sesquicentennial Day.) Also celebrated on June 19th is Juneteenth, or Emancipation Day. Texas also celebrates former TEXAS president, Lyndon B. Johnson's birthday on August 27th. Other partial days off include Election Day, the secret half day off for Christmas shopping, and the all too rare snow day.

Texaco

The name stands for "Texas Fuel Company" or at least it did, originally. Texaco was created in 1902 in Beaumont, TX in the wake of the Spindletop discovery. The familiar Texaco star logo was inspired by Texas own Lone Star. Texaco, USA is based in Houston; yet Texaco Int'l is in White Plains, NY.

The Texas Accent

Now Y'all KNOW thar aint no such thang! But seriously, because of Texas size, because of the constant influx of immigrants, and because it has been influenced by BOTH the South and the West, accents in Texas range from Sweet Southern drawls to Midwestern twangs, and many people in Texas, especially urban dwellers, have no particular accent at all. Probably the MOST commonly considered accent is the drawl of Former TEXAS President, Lyndon B. Johnson. "Mah Fella Amurikins" The "g" drops off the end of words, and the language is peppered with words like "Y'all" and "Rrckon." To read more about the Texas Accent visit the George W. Humor, Texas Talkin & the Hickphonics pages.

Texas Caviar

Black Eyed Peas. First christened as such by Helen Corbitt in her heyday at Neiman Marcus in the fifties. It is also a Texas tradition to have ham and black eyed peas for your New Years Day Dinner.