Investigating the origins of American words, names, quotations and phrases.
The Governor's Mansion hit a culinary home run with Laura Bush's Governor's Mansion Cowboy Cookies recipe, popularly published in 2000. Other recipes have been published from the…
Deer Park (in Southeast Texas) has called itself "the birthplace of Texas." The San Jacinto battlefield is near Deer Park; on April 21, 1836, the decisive victory of the Texans over the…
Lone Star Beer began when prohibition ended. Lone Star has used the slogans "National Beer of Texas" since 1984 and "It's a Texas Thing" since 2000. "It's a Texas…
"Floribbean" is "Florida" + "Caribbean." National Airlines advertised "Floribbean" vacations in the 1960s. In the early 1990s, "Floribbean" became…
Fritos corn chips began in 1932. Someone, sometime, thought of the idea of adding chili to the corn chips and "Frito pie" was born. Daisy Dean Doolin, the mother of Frito founder Elmer…
Texas Monthly began in 1973 and calls itself "the national magazine of Texas" because of its national readership. See also the National Drink of Texas (Dr. Pepper) and the National Beer…
The "Golden Corridor" is a North Dallas area between I-35 and Highway 75 north of the LBJ Freeway (I-635). The Golden Corridor Republican Women was formed in 1990. The State Highway 121…
The King Ranch in Texas began in 1853 and is one of the most famous ranches in the world. It's said that two brands of cattle started there. King Ranch is not, however, known for its chicken.…
A "bacon strip district" is an electoral district like the one in the Rio Grande Valley (25th Congressional District) that's long and thin and can go on for hundreds of miles. The…
Most homes in Texas don't have basements. The water table and the soil prevent it. A "Texas basement" is an attic. International Real Estate Digest: USA/TexasWhy don't Texas…
"Godzillatron" is the nickname of the scoreboard at the University of Texas at Austin's Darrell K. Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. Like the "Godzilla" monster, it's…
The Pig Stand "drive-in" opened in 1921 in Dallas and soon became a popular restaurant chain. The Pig Stand featured "car hops" who brought meals to customers waiting in their…
The "corn dog" (or "corndog" or "corny dog") is a "hot dog" coated in corn meal, served on a stick. It was long thought that the corndog was invented at the…
Pluto was declassified as a planet in August 2006. The mnemonic device for remembering the order of the planets from the sun had been "My Very Educated Mother Served Us Nine Pizzas." With…
"Guacamole" isn't found in English-language cookbooks until about 1930. Guacamole is a Mexican dish and is called "huacamole" in Texan Ranch Life (1894). The food term…
The Texas "panhandle" is the northwest part of the state. The "panhandle" term comes from the lay of the land, like the "handle" of a "pan." The term…
"Remember the Alamo!" was the war cry at the battle of San Jacinto on April 21, 1836, about a month after the fall of the Alamo. The Texas forces, led by commander-in-chief Sam Houston,…
An "Arkansas toothpick" is a 19th century term for a knife. A knife was sometimes (rarely) also called a "Texas toothpick." "Texas toothpicks" is a 1990s name for…
A "Texas Philly" is a Philadelphia cheesteak sandwich with jalapeños. The "Philly" is a steak sandwich with Cheez Whiz, popularized by Pat's King of Steaks in…
"Cowboy caviar" is sometimes just another name for "Texas Caviar," a black-eyed peas dish. When black beans are substituted for black-eyed peas, "Texas caviar" becomes…