Texas Hill Country
Texas Hill Country | |
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Coordinates: 30°10′27″N 99°03′55″W / 30.17417°N 99.06528°W | |
Location | Central Texas, United States |
Elevation | 980–2,460 ft (300–750 m) |
The Texas Hill Country is a geographic region of Central and South Texas, forming the southeast part of the Edwards Plateau. Given its location, climate, terrain, and vegetation, the Hill Country can be considered the border between the American Southeast and Southwest.[1] The region represents the very remote rural countryside of Central Texas, but also is home to growing suburban neighborhoods and affluent retirement communities.[2]
The region is notable for its
Bound on the east by the
Counties
According to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, these 25 counties are included in the Hill Country Wildlife District:[7]
History and politics
During the
Even when no Republicans were in the
Geography
Because of its karst topography, the area also features a number of caverns, such as
Several tributaries of the Colorado River in Texas—including the Llano and Pedernales Rivers, which cross the region west to east and join the Colorado as it cuts across the region to the southeast—drain a large portion of the Hill Country. The Guadalupe, San Antonio, Frio, Medina, and Nueces Rivers originate in the Hill Country.
This region is a dividing line for certain species occurrence. For example, the California fan palm (Washingtonia filifera) is the only species of palm tree that is native to the continental United States west of the Hill Country's Balcones Fault.[9]
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As seen from nearInterstate 10
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View of the Texas Hill Country, from Garner State Park, located in Uvalde County
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Another scene from near Garner State Park
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Windmill in the Hill Country
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House atop hill in Texas Hill Country north of Bandera
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A view of the Texas Hill Country from a rural road inHays County
In popular culture
The area experiences a fusion of
Devil's Backbone is an elevated, winding stretch of
The region has emerged as the center of the Texas wine industry.[citation needed] Three American Viticultural Areas are located in the areas: Texas Hill Country AVA, Fredericksburg in the Texas Hill Country AVA, and Bell Mountain AVA.
Notable people
Name | Birth | Death | Notes |
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Lance Armstrong | 1971 | — | Professional cyclist renowned for seven consecutive Tour de France wins after surviving cancer. He was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles over a doping controversy. He was born in Plano, but is a long-time resident of Austin. |
Buffalo Hump | c 1800 | 1870 | War chief of the Penateka band of the Comanche |
Liz Carpenter | 1920 | 2010 | A journalist, author, political speech writer, humorist, public speaker, and the first female vice president of University of Texas student body, she is one of the founders of National Women's Political Caucus and co-chair of ERAmerica, traveling the country to push for passage of the Equal Rights Amendment. She drafted President Johnson's November 22, 1963, speech to the American public after the assassination of John F. Kennedy .
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Jody Conradt | 1941 | — | A retired women's basketball head coach, she was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1998, Women's Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999, and the Texas Women's Hall of Fame 1986. She was born in Goldthwaite and resides in Austin. She is the first women's basketball collegiate coach to reach 700 career victories, yet she achieved a 99% graduation rate for the students on her teams. |
Michael Dell | 1965 | — | Founder of Dell computers, he started company in Austin and still resides there. |
Shelley Duvall | 1949 | _ | Actress, including |
John Henry Faulk | 1913 | 1990 | Austin-based radio personality, author, playwright, folklorist, actor, lecturer, blacklisted during the 1950s |
Kinky Friedman | 1944 | — | American singer, songwriter, novelist, humorist, politician and columnist. Born in Chicago but grew up in Austin. Resides at Echo Hill Ranch near Kerrville. Founded Utopia Animal Rescue Ranch, also located near Kerrville. |
Fred Gipson | 1908 | 1973 | Novelist who authored Old Yeller, Savage Sam, and Hound Dog Man, lived in Mason |
Trey Hardee | 1984 | — | World Champion Decathlete and graduate of the University of Texas at Austin
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Harvey Hilderbran | 1960 | — | State Representative from the western Hill Country since 1989, a Republican from Kerrville |
Max Hirsch | 1880 | 1969 | National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame thoroughbred horse trainer |
Betty Holekamp | 1826 | 1902 | German Texas pioneer, also called the "Betsy Ross of Texas" |
Carl Hoppe | 1897 | 1981 | San Antonio artist who painted scenes of the Texas Hill Country |
Molly Ivins | 1944 | 2007 | Political author, journalist, humorist from Austin |
Lady Bird Johnson | 1912 | 2007 | Former University of Texas in Austin. Business woman and one-time owner of KTBC radio and television stations turned $17,500 investment into more than $150 million. She bankrolled her husband's initial political career. Buried in Stonewall next to husband Lyndon B. Johnson. Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is named for her decades-long project to beautify America's landscapes
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Lyndon B. Johnson | 1908 | 1973 | Former President of the United States, born and raised in Stonewall. |
Tommy Lee Jones | 1946 | — | Actor, born in San Saba. |
Robert Earl Keen | 1956 | — | Country singer-songwriter, former resident of Bandera, Texas and current resident of Kerrville, Texas |
Ben Kweller | 1981 | — | Recording artist, singer-songwriter, and actor. Originally from Greenville; now resides in Dripping Springs. |
Janis Joplin | 1943 | 1970 | Singer and songwriter, born in Port Arthur |
Herman Lehmann | 1859 | 1932 | Apache captive and then Comanche adoptee (adopted son of Chief Quanah Parker), native of Loyal Valley, 1927 autobiography, Nine Years Among the Indians |
Hermann Lungkwitz | 1813 | 1891 | Romantic landscape artist and photographer, noted for first pictorial records of the Texas Hill Country |
Gerald Lyda | 1923 | 2005 | General contractor and cattle rancher, born and raised in the Hill Country community of Marble Falls |
Johnny Manziel | 1992 | — | The first freshman to win Heisman trophy and quarterback for the Texas A&M University Aggies, from Kerrville |
Samuel Maverick | 1803 | 1870 | Texas lawyer, politician, land baron and signer of the Texas Declaration of Independence. His name is the source of the term "maverick," first cited in 1867, which means "independently minded." |
Matthew McConaughey | 1969 | — | Model/Actor, raised in The University of Texas at Austin
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John O. Meusebach | 1812 | 1897 | Founder of Santa Anna, Old Owl. Oversaw development of New Braunfels . Elected Texas State Senator for Bexar, Comal and Medina Counties. Buried Marschall-Meusebach Cemetery in Loyal Valley
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Willie Nelson | 1933 | — | American country singer-songwriter, author, poet, actor and activist. Austin resident |
Elisabet Ney | 1833 | 1907 | Sculptor, art pioneer, works can be found in the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Texas State Capitol, U.S. Capitol |
Chester W. Nimitz | 1885 | 1966 | Commander of U.S. Naval forces in the Pacific during World War II was from Fredericksburg and Kerrville |
Old Owl | c 1795 | 1849 | Civil Chief of the Penateka band of the Comanche Indians |
Alfred P.C. Petsch | 1887 | 1981 | Lawyer, legislator, civic leader, and philanthropist. Served in the Texas House of Representatives 1925–1941. Veteran of both World War I and World War II.[12] |
Ann Richards | 1933 | 2006 | Governor of Texas (1991–1995). Resided in Austin. |
Andy Roddick | 1982 | — | Former professional tennis player who resides in Austin. |
Santa Anna |
c 1795 | 1849 | War Chief of the Penateka band of the Comanche Indians |
Juan Nepomuceno Seguín |
1806 | 1890 | Served on both sides during the General Adrian Woll and participated in Woll's 1842 invasion of Texas. Seguin, Texas, is named in his honor.[13][14][15]
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Sixpence None the Richer | 1992 | — | An alternative rock band prominent in the late 1990s with their song "Kiss Me" |
Frank Van der Stucken | 1858 | 1929 | Music composer, conductor[16] |
Stevie Ray Vaughan | 1954 | 1990 | Blues guitar player resided in Austin. |
See also
- Adelsverein
- Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge
- Cherry Springs Dance Hall
- German Texan
- List of geographical regions in Texas
- Mount Bonnell
- Revolutions of 1848
- Enchanted Rock
References
- ^ a b c d Jordan, Terry G. "Hill Country". Handbook of Texas Online. Retrieved November 7, 2009.
- ^ Dizik, Alina (June 8, 2018). "In Texas Hill Country, a Land Rush for the Rich". Retrieved October 22, 2020.
- ^ Google Earth Terrain Data
- ISBN 978-1-58544-408-3.
- ^ "America's Next Great Metropolis Is Taking Shape In Texas". Forbes. October 13, 2016. Retrieved October 17, 2016.
- ^ "The City of the Eternal Boom". TexasMonthly.com. February 24, 2016. Retrieved January 25, 2017.
- ^ Texas Parks and Wildlife. "Hill Country Wildlife Management". Land & Water: Habitats. Retrieved April 5, 2010.
- ^ ‘6 Unionist Strongholds in the South during the Civil War’
- ^ Hogan, C. Michael (January 5, 2009). Nicklas Stromberg (ed.). "California Fan Palm: Washingtonia filifera". GlobalTwitcher.com. Archived from the original on September 30, 2009. Retrieved July 18, 2009.
- ^ "Texas scenic drive, Devil's Backbone, RR 32". www.texasescapes.com. Retrieved September 24, 2018.
- ^ Abramovitch, Seth (February 11, 2021). "Searching for Shelley Duvall: The Reclusive Icon on Fleeing Hollywood and the Scars of Making 'The Shining'". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on February 11, 2021. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
- ^ Watkins, Melanie. "Petsch, Alfred PC". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
- ^ McKeehan, Wallace L. "The Battle of Salado The Journal of James Wilson Nichols 1820–1887". Sons of DeWitt Colony Texas. Retrieved November 13, 2010.
- ^ de la Teja, Jesús F. "Seguin, Juan Nepomuceno". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved November 13, 2010.
- ^ "Col. Juan N. Seguin". Seguin Descendants Historical Preservation. Archived from the original on October 24, 2010. Retrieved November 13, 2010.
- ^ Wolz, Larry. "Van Der Stucken, Frank Valentine". Handbook of Texas Online. Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved November 17, 2010.