Texas Featured
People and History
The remarkable people, past and present, whose stories shaped Texas.
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Excelsior House Hotel: A Riverboat-Era Inn in Jefferson Built in 1858
Captain William Perry built a home, offices and hotel on Big Cypress Bayou in 1858. Today the Excelsior House bills itself as Texas’s oldest…
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Luckenbach, Texas: How Hondo Crouch Turned a Hill Country Crossroads Into a Music Legend
A town with one general store and a handful of residents became world famous. The story begins with Hondo Crouch, a beer joint and…
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Gruene Hall: Inside Texas’s Oldest Continually Operating Dance Hall, Built in 1878
A tin-roofed dance hall in New Braunfels has hosted music since 1878. George Strait, Willie Nelson and Lyle Lovett have all played its small…
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Kreuz Market: Lockhart’s Barbecue Landmark That Moved Its Coals in 1999
A Lockhart meat market started selling barbecue in 1875. Charles Kreuz bought it in 1900, and when the market moved in 1999, the pit…
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Threadgill’s: The Austin Filling Station and Beer Joint Where Janis Joplin Found Her Voice
Kenneth Threadgill opened a filling station with the county’s first beer license in 1933. His Wednesday night singing sessions helped shape Austin’s music scene.
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Louie Mueller Barbecue: Three Generations of Smoke in Taylor, Texas
Louie Mueller opened his Taylor barbecue joint in 1949. His son Bobby ran the smoker for decades, and grandson Wayne is the pitmaster today.
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Ninfa’s on Navigation: How a Houston Tortilla Factory Taco Stand Helped Popularize Fajitas
In 1973, widow and mother of five Ninfa Laurenzo opened a taco stand to save her struggling tortilla factory. Her tacos al carbon changed…
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Joe T. Garcia’s: The Fort Worth Family Restaurant With a Patio Garden and No Fuss Since 1935
Mamasuez came to Fort Worth from Michoacan in 1911. Her family’s restaurant on North Commerce Street turned 90 in 2025, and her grandchildren still…
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Fredericksburg’s German Roots: How Immigrants Shaped Hill Country Business
Founded in 1846 by German settlers, Fredericksburg still carries its heritage in its bakeries, breweries and Main Street shops.