Texas Day by Day
Find out what happened today in Texas history.
Texas Industrial Congress founded
113 years ago today on April 19th, 1910
On this day in 1910, the Texas Industrial Congress was organized at San Antonio. This nonpolitical, nonpartisan, and nonsectional organization sought the development of Texas resources in agriculture, commerce, and industry. With the slogan "Equal Rights to All; Special Privileges to None," it proposed to work for legislation to develop Texas resources, to correct misimpressions about the state, and to encourage homeseekers and investors to move here. Annual conventions were proposed to discuss state welfare and outline action. As a result of the 1915 depression that followed the outbreak of World War I, the Industrial Congress sponsored a "Buy It Made in Texas" movement, which combated unemployment and encouraged manufacture. By 1917 this movement resulted in legislation allowing corporations to make contributions to commercial organizations. The influence of the Industrial Congress dwindled with the development of regional chambers of commerce.
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White Horse surrenders
148 years ago today on April 19th, 1875
On this day in 1875, Kiowa chief White Horse (Tsen-tainte) and a group of followers surrendered at Fort Sill, Indian Territory. White Horse had gained considerable notoriety during the early 1870s for his raids on Texas settlements, and was considered the "most dangerous man" among the Kiowas. He participated in the Warren wagontrain raid in May 1871 and in the second battle of Adobe Walls in June 1874. He was also present in September 1874 at the battle of Palo Duro Canyon, which apparently convinced him that further resistance was futile. White Horse was among those singled out by Kicking Bird for incarceration at St. Augustine, Florida. He died of a stomach ailment in 1892 and was buried on the reservation near Fort Sill.
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Author attempts to jump-start town with fictional UFO story
126 years ago today on April 19th, 1897
On this day in 1897, S. E. Haydon, a cotton buyer in the small Wise County community of Aurora, released a fictional "news" story in the Dallas Morning News describing the crash of a mysterious airship just outside of town. Aurora was founded in the late 1850s and had grown considerably by the mid-1880s. But an outbreak of spotted fever began in 1888, and by 1889 fear of the epidemic had caused a mass exodus. Two years later, when the Burlington Northern Railroad abandoned its plan to lay tracks through Aurora, most of the few remaining inhabitants moved to Rhome, the site of a new railroad stop two miles to the southeast. Hayden's story succeeded in causing a sensation because tales of UFOs near Fort Worth were already current. Aurora remained comatose, however. In 1901 postal service was discontinued. The construction of State Highway 114 through the town in 1939 probably saved it from extinction. In the early 1970s Aurora underwent a rebirth as the town became a bedroom community of Fort Worth.
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West Texas Historical Association organized in Abilene
99 years ago today on April 19th, 1924
On this day in 1924, the West Texas Historical Association was organized at the Taylor County Courthouse in Abilene. The organization was the brainchild of Royston Campbell Crane Sr., the son of former Baylor University president William Carey Crane. Crane and six Abilene residents, including R. N. Richardson, Laura J. D. Scarborough, and William C. Holden, signed the call for the organizational meeting. In 1925 the association, headquartered at Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene, began publication of its annual Year Books, which have included scholarly articles, memoirs, documents, book reviews, and other miscellaneous pieces. The association has grown from twenty-four members in 1924 to several hundred.
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From Cabeza de Vaca's ship-wreck in 1528 through the Texas Revolution to present day—almost 500 years of recorded history—a myriad of significant events in Texas history have occurred. These events are arranged by day of the year to allow the reader to see into the past on any specific day.
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Recent & Upcoming Anniversaries
The following entries have anniversaries that occurred this month or will occur in the next 2 month(s)
470th Anniversary
- Spanish treasure ships wrecked on Padre Island 1 week from now
335th Anniversary
- Spanish explorer names the Nueces 2 weeks ago
- Coahuila governor discovers and names Guadalupe River 4 days ago
- Spanish explorer finds defunct French fort 4 days from now
325th Anniversary
- San Juan Bautista Mission founded 2 months 6 days from now
315th Anniversary
245th Anniversary
- American Revolution reaches Texas 2 months 3 days from now
205th Anniversary
- Provisional government declares Texas independence 2 months 5 days from now
- Early Texas journalist heralds Long expedition 1 month 2 weeks from now
200th Anniversary
- Austin Colony settlers clash with Karankawas 2 months 4 days from now
195th Anniversary
- Future Alamo defender and survivor elope 1 month 6 days from now
- Irish trader takes citizenship oath 1 month 1 day from now
185th Anniversary
- Republic of Texas defeats revolutionary plotters in key action 4 weeks from now
- "Village Blacksmith of Cumby" born in Tennessee 1 month 1 week from now
180th Anniversary
- Pioneer Texas doctor born in Alabama 1 month 3 days from now
- Historic steamer arrives in Texas 2 weeks from now
175th Anniversary
- Major Neighbors returns to San Antonio after leading historic western surveying expedition 1 month 2 weeks from now
- German furniture artist arrives in Texas 1 month 3 days from now
170th Anniversary
- War Department orders surveys for Indian reservations 1 week from now
- Texas Germans declare slavery to be evil 3 weeks from now
- Prairie chicken namesake born in England 1 week from now
160th Anniversary
- General Taylor foils Union campaign in Louisiana 1 week ago
- Partisan leader promoted 1 month 1 week from now
- Former Texan rallies Union troops, awarded Medal of Honor 2 weeks from now
- Hood's Texas Brigade rallies around General Lee 2 weeks from now
- Civil War skirmish at Las Rusias 2 months 1 week from now
155th Anniversary
- Alleged participants in mob killing go on trial 1 month 6 days from now
- High court rules that Texas can sue in federal courts despite secession 3 days ago
150th Anniversary
- Governor Coke appoints commander of Frontier Battalion 2 weeks from now
- First letter from "Pidge" appears in Austin paper 1 week from now
- Indian raiders strike again at Adobe Walls 2 months 1 week from now
- Feudists intensify conflict by lynching 2 months 2 days from now
145th Anniversary
- Northeast Texas community gets a post office 1 month 4 weeks from now
- First county in Panhandle organized 6 days ago
135th Anniversary
- Texas booster fair opens in Fort Worth 1 month 1 week from now
130th Anniversary
- Water-well contractor accidentally discovers first major Texas oilfield 1 month 3 weeks from now
125th Anniversary
- Water rises disastrously as rain gluts the Brazos rivershed 1 month 4 weeks from now
120th Anniversary
105th Anniversary
- Texas Senate ratifies women's right to vote 2 months 1 week from now
- Texas congressman calls Mexican president a "spineless cactus" 2 months 1 day from now
100th Anniversary
- Congress establishes United States Border Patrol 1 month 1 week from now
- West Texas Historical Association organized in Abilene 1 day from now
- Texas baritone makes professional debut in New York 2 days from now
90th Anniversary
- Murderers and bank robbers Bonnie and Clyde gunned down in Louisiana 1 month 5 days from now
85th Anniversary
- UT observatory dedicated in Davis Mountains 2 weeks from now
- Soil Conservation Board established 1 month 1 week from now
- Refugee conductor gives "demonstration concert" in San Antonio 1 month 3 weeks from now
80th Anniversary
- U.S. Supreme Court dooms white primary 2 weeks ago
- Rudder's Rangers fight with distinction on Normandy beaches 1 month 2 weeks from now
75th Anniversary
- Residents of homestead community petition for incorporation 2 months 1 week from now
60th Anniversary
- Construction begins at Toledo Bend Reservoir 3 weeks from now
55th Anniversary
- Houston surgeon implants first artificial heart 2 weeks ago
- New park opens to public 1 month 1 week from now
- Famous horse wins at Aqueduct on the eve of his trainer's death 2 weeks ago
- Last passenger train leaves Dallas terminal 1 month 1 week from now
- New airport opens in Houston 1 month 2 weeks from now
- El Paso County gives rock art site to state 1 month 3 weeks from now
45th Anniversary
- Dallas designates Federal Reserve Bank a historic landmark 3 weeks from now
- Novelist dies after fistfight 1 month 2 weeks from now
- Orange Show opens to the public 3 weeks from now
40th Anniversary
- Landmark public education suit filed 1 month 5 days from now
- Legendary jazz pianist dies 5 days from now
25th Anniversary
- Spurs are champions! 2 months 1 week from now