Best Places to Picnic in Texas

The Republic of Texas achieved its independence from Mexico in 1836, the same year as the famous siege of the Alamo in which pioneers Jim Bowie and Davy Crockett were slain.

The "Lone Star State" was the 28th state to join the Union, admitted in 1845. The name Texas is a Spanish name, which comes from an Indian word meaning "friends" or "allies." 

Texas is the second-largest state in the Union in area, after Alaska. Although it has a wild, frontier history, today Texas is a major producer of oil and has important centers of industry and finance.

A Texas state historian has said that the state flower, the bluebonnet, "is to Texas what the shamrock is to Ireland."

• Texas State Park Sites (See current Alpha list)
  1. Panhandle Plains Region
  2. Prairies & Lakes Region
  3. Pineywoods Region
  4. Gulf Coast Region
  5. South Texas Plains Region
  6. Hill Country Region
  7. Big Bend Country Region
• National Park Sites
  • Alibates Flint Quarries National Monument
  • Amistad National Recreation Area
  • Big Bend National Park
  • Big Thicket National Preserve
  • Fort Davis National Historic Site
  • Lake Meredith National Recreation Area
  • Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park
  • Guadalupe Mountains National Park
  • Padre Island National Seashore
  • Palo Alto Battlefield National Historic Site
  • San Antonio Missions National Historical Park
• Texas City and Town Parks
  • San Antonio City Parks