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We Texans get a
lot of questions about our state, like, "Just
HOW BIG is Texas?", so here are a few
facts on how big Texas is:
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Our State
Capital located in Austin is built of Texas pink granite. Dedicated in 1888,
it is the nation's largest statehouse, with a dome seven feet taller than
that of the National Capital in Washington D.C.
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The San
Jacinto Monument in Deer Park (just outside Houston) is among the tallest
columns in the world; at 570 feet, it's about twenty feet higher than the
Washington Monument in the District of Columbia.
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Texas has
more counties (254) than any other state. Forty-0ne counties in Texas are
each larger than the state of Rhode Island.
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Of the
nation's ten largest cities, three are in Texas: Houston, Dallas and San
Antonio.
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Texas is
the nation's leading producer of oil, natural gas, beef, sheep, goats, wool,
cotton, rice and watermelons.
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Today,
approximately 18 million people live in Texas, only slightly outnumbering
our 15 million cattle. Texas today is also home for about 2.5 million deer
and 200,000 alligators.
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The land
area of Texas is larger than all of New England, New York, Pennsylvania,
Ohio and Illinois combined. It extends 801 miles from north to south, and
773 miles from east to west.
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The
Dallas/Ft. Worth airport is larger than New York City's Manhattan Island.
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El Paso on
the west tip of Texas is closer to Los Angeles, California on the Pacific
coast than it is to Port Arthur on the Gulf of Mexico coast. Port Arthur, on
the other hand, is closer to Jacksonville, Florida on the Atlantic coast
than it is to El Paso.
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Note: All
Texans know that if you were to melt Alaska, it would be smaller than Rhode
Island!
Here are some other interesting facts
about Texas:
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There are
more than 70,000 miles of highway in Texas.
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Texas has
6,300 square miles of inland lakes and streams, second only to Alaska.
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Tallest
point in Texas is Guadalupe Peak at 8,751 feet.
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The
coastline of Texas stretches 624 miles along the Gulf of Mexico and is home
to 600 plus historical shipwrecks.
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The Texas
Indian population ranks sixth among the states, with approximately 65,000.
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Texas was
annexed to the United States as the 28th state on December 29, 1845.
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Texas has
approximately 11,500 historical markers, 700 local history museums, and more
than 2,000 sites listed in the National Register of Historical Places.
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The
present Texas Constitution was ratified on February 15, 1876.
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The Battle
of the Alamo, lasting nearly two weeks, ended on March 6, 1836, with the
deaths of all it's defenders (numbering about 190). The Mexican army of
Santa Anna numbered 4,000. Among those killed were Davie Crockett, Jim Bowie
and William B. Travis.
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The King
Ranch was founded by Richard King and grew to 825,000 acres.
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Rodeos
were first held in Pecos, Texas. They were a contest to show off the skilled
used in cowboy's everyday work.
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Texas
Chainsaw Massacre never happened in the Lone Star State. The movie was
loosely based on a situation in Wisconsin.
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