Ken Bridges/Contributing writer Cities are often known by the newspapers they support and the opportunities that their residents find. When one English immigrant arrived in Dallas in 1885, he became known for both. George Dealey became the driving force behind The Dallas Morning News from its founding and became an importantContinue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer Musicians and songwriters paint a picture of the world with their sounds, telling stories of joy and heartbreak and of beauty or sorrow. Country music is especially famous for sometimes combining all of those elements into one song as it has evolved over the decades. The ups andContinue Reading
By Ken Bridges The Civil War was a time of great chaos and terrible destruction. Hundreds of thousands of men fought on both sides. In Texas, the commander of one of the most famous Confederate divisions was John George Walker. Walker’s adventures, however, would take him far from Texas. WalkerContinue Reading
By Ken Bridges She grew up in a time when women almost never attended college, almost never spoke out on the issues, and certainly never voted. But one woman did all of them, and in the process, “Ma” Ferguson became one of the most unforgettable women in Texas political history. Miriam A. Wallace wasContinue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer Many great cities have risen or fallen in the United States. Some have prospered and grown to become huge metropolises while others never came into focus or just faded away. In many cases, the future success of these cities was the result of the work of oneContinue Reading
By Ken Bridges In the late 1970s and through the 1980s, millions of people would tune in weekly to watch Dallas, a night-time soap opera about the tawdry scandals and business dealings of a Texas oil family. At the same time, a family of Texas oil barons transplanted from ArkansasContinue Reading
By Ken Bridges The name “Ima Hogg” has been a running joke in Texas for many years. However, for anyone who knew her or had ever been touched by her many works, the real Ima Hogg was anything but a joke. Ima Hogg was born in Mineola in 1882, the daughter ofContinue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer Texas universities have produced many interesting political figures. Perhaps one of the most unusual journeys was that of University of Texas graduate Fernando Belaunde. Belaunde earned a Texas architectural license, became a noted architect, and was twice elected president of Peru, surviving a military coup in theContinue Reading
By Ken Bridges Quanah Parker became a respected leader of the Comanche Nation at the end of the Plains Indian Wars. He spent much of his life caught between two worlds. He was the son of a white settler and a Comanche chief. And he had to lead his tribeContinue Reading
By Ken Bridges “An ounce of prevention is worth a ton of cure,” is a popular English proverb. It has also become an important idea in medicine, to avoid major health crises by preventing them. As part of this, vaccinations have been part of health in the state for manyContinue Reading
By Ken Bridges He was the first chief justice of the state supreme court in Texas, and as such, he made Texas law into an instrument to be used by all people. John Hemphill was one of the first great legal minds to preside over a Texas court. Hemphill wasContinue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer Many historians have called Stephen F. Austin the “father of Texas” for his efforts to bring the first settlers from the United States into Texas. But the story begins with his own father, businessman and visionary Moses Austin, who in his own way became the “grandfather of Texas.” Moses Austin was born in Connecticut inContinue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer John Adams, the nation’s second president, once wrote, “I must study war and diplomacy so that my children may study math and science and that their children may study art and philosophy.” Thus is the story of Lawrence Sullivan “Sul” Ross, a man who beat the proverbialContinue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer Editors note: The following column ran in the July 23 print edition of the Jefferson Jimplecute an incorrect byline. This column was written by Ken Bridges, not Hugh Lewis. We regret the error. “It is easier to build strong children than it is to repair brokenContinue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer Galveston, once the most important port city in Texas, suffered a crushing blow with the hurricane of 1900. Once the waters receded and the extent of the damage became clear, the city faced the overwhelming task of rebuilding. One of the most important tasks, surviving residents decided,Continue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer For the adventurers and dreamers of the world, there are no limits. Wiley Hardeman Post was born on his parents’ cotton farm near Canton in November 1898. He was born on a farm with no electricity in a time when airplanes were still just a dream, butContinue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer Henry B. Gonzalez had a long and controversial career as a Texas politician. He was the first Hispanic elected to Congress from Texas and was never afraid to speak his mind on the issues. Gonzalez was born to immigrant parents in San Antonio in 1916. His parentsContinue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer Summer in Texas brings memories of warm nights, the start of school, and the return of football. But it also means something else for Texans on the Gulf Coast: hurricane season. As the summertime seas cause the storms to build and swirl, a careful eye must turn to the weather toContinue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer The early 1900s was a formative time for education in Texas. Sidney Mezes, a one-time president of the University of Texas, rose to the forefront to serve as such a leader as well as a diplomat and a thinker. In the process, the son of a pioneerContinue Reading
Ken Bridges/Contributing writer Doing the right thing is easy when it is popular and everyone supports it, but doing the right thing is very different when fighting people who have a vested interest in letting evil prevail or when your life is threatened. Dan Moody, a one-time Texas governor, roseContinue Reading