The Friends of the Texas Historical Commission partners with the Texas Historical Commission to preserve and promote the real places and real stories of Texas, including our state historic sites.?Register now for upcoming free online programs that tell these stories.?
Under One Fence: The Land and Legacy of the Waggoner Ranch ?
The Waggoner Ranch is the largest contiguous ranch in the United States. The story of this land spans multiple generations and even more North Texas counties. What started as a small family endeavor in Hopkins County grew into a true Texas legacy spreading over half a million acres. In 1854, Daniel Waggoner purchased a herd of longhorn cattle and together with his son and family moved to a small farm on Catlett Creek in what is now Wise County. However, the restless Waggoners continued to move further west, locating land on Beaver Creek in Wilbarger County.
The legacy of the ranch has been written by a colorful cast of characters that include the likes of Quanah Parker and?Teddy Roosevelt, but none may be as important as the everyday cowboys that continue to work tirelessly ensuring the day-to-day activities of the ranch run smoothly.
Join us as Chairman of the Wilbarger County Historical Commission and Red River Valley Museum board member, Jeff Bearden, walks us through the history of the ranch, using the museum?s exhibit as a helpful guide!
Date: Thursday, September 15, 6 p.m. Central Platform: Zoom (Registrants will receive the link to attend closer to event date) Cost:?Free (Donations?in support of the Friends of the Texas Historical Commission are welcome and appreciated!)
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Settlement and Survival Along the Lower Rio Grande
The inception for settlement along the lower Rio Grande in the mid-18th?century began with Spain?s viceregal government's urgency to prevent France from establishing colonies further west into the region we now know as Texas. The Spanish, intent on settling in the region, had been sending missionaries in the early 1700s to the Red River with the same goal.
In 1749, Spain appointed Jos? de Escand?n with a project to bring settlers north from the interior provinces of the Seno Mexicano to the area between the Rio Grande and San Antonio river, known as Nuevo Santander. Small towns were established along the Rio Grande, including Laredo, Camargo, Mier, and Reynosa. While Escand?n made some initial large grants of land, it was after the appointment of a royal land commission that the bulk of the leagues north of the Rio Grande were assigned to various applicants.
Those settlers formed not only sizeable settlements but ranches and farms. Join us for a virtual presentation and discussion with Mary Margaret McAllen exploring the success of these settlers and the arrival of newcomers over the next decades.
Date: Thursday, October 6, 6 p.m. Central Platform: Zoom (Registrants will receive the link to attend closer to event date) Cost:?Free (Donations?in support of the Friends of the Texas Historical Commission are welcome and appreciated!)
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More Virtual Events...
Evolution of Overnight Accommodations Presented by Leslie Wolfenden, THC Historic Resources Survey Coordinator Date: Thursday, October 20; Cost: Free
The Green Book and Historically Black Colleges and Universities in Texas Presented by Leslie Wolfenden, THC Historic Resources Survey Coordinator, and Daniele Dixon, Historian Date: Thursday, December 8; Cost: Free
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