17 Texas Facts That Will Blow You Away

Created by Charles Alderton in Waco, Dr Pepper was first nationally marketed in 1904 and is now sold all over the world. The recipe is a secret and is kept in two halves in safety deposit boxes located in two different Dallas banks. The unique soft drink is so popular in the US that it now outsells Pepsi.

Restaurateur Mariano Martinez, who drew inspiration from the Slurpee machines at 7-11, adapted a soft-serve ice cream machine to make frozen margaritas and called it “The World’s First Frozen Margarita Machine”. It is now on display at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.

Looney Tunes animator Tex Avery, who attended North Dallas High School, introduced the phrase. He later said that he didn’t think much of it because it was a common phrase used where he grew up.

These six countries are Spain, France, Mexico, the Republic of Texas, the United States, and the Confederate States of America. The six flags can be found on the reverse of the Seal of Texas.

There are three power grids in the US: one for states east of the Rocky Mountains, one for states between the Pacific and the Rocky Mountains, and one for Texas. The Texas power grid was established during WWII to make sure all of the Texas factories producing critical war supplies were self-sustainable.

An early image of the Lone Star flag was drawn by Dr. Charles B. Stewart, but no one knows who is responsible for actually designing it. Stewart’s drawing was used when the flag was being enacted by legislation, but the origin of the design still remains a mystery.

The red, white, and blue colors used on the flag are required to be an exact match to those on the national flag. Each color has its own meaning: red for bravery, white for purity, and blue for loyalty.

The Great Galveston Hurricane of 1900 took between 6,000 and 12,000 lives with a storm surge of 8–15 ft (2.4–4.5m). The next deadliest hurricane in US history was Hurricane Katrina, which claimed 1,200 lives.

Located in Bracken Cave, the largest known North American bat colony has over 20 million bats, which is more than the entire human population of Mexico City. The largest known urban bat colony is also located in Texas over Lady Bird Lake in Austin.

In a rural stretch located between Austin and San Antonio, the speed limit of a 40mi (64m) stretch of a toll road is 85mph (137kmph). Texas also has the fastest average legal speed at 78.3 mph (126kmph).

In terms of gross square footage, the Texas Capitol is only smaller in size to the US Capitol building. Additionally, the Texas Capitol dome actually sits 7ft (2.13m) higher than the US Capitol’s.

If Texas were its own country, it would be the 40th largest in land area. With an area of 268,820sqmi (696,240sqkm), Texas is second only to Alaska’s landmass.

Sprawled across 825,000 acres, King Ranch is home to over 200 Quarter Horses and over 35,000 heads of cattle. The ranch reaches into six different counties and was designated as a National Historic Landmark in 1961.

These cities are Houston, Dallas, and San Antonio. The total population of the Texas Triangle Mega-region as of the 2010 census was 17,745,584.

Home to America’s National Helium Reserve, Amarillo contains about 90% of the world’s recoverable helium supply. Scientists initially believed that helium didn’t exist on Earth due to several failed experiments to replicate the gas.

The Helium Centennial Time Columns Monument was built in 1968 in honor of the 100th anniversary of the discovery of helium. One of the time capsules sealed on the monument is set to open 1,000 years from that date and has a passbook to a bank account with a $10 bill.

Located in Denton County, DISH was established in June 2000 after a commercial agreement to change its name in November 2005. DISH is home to just 200 residents and 60 gas wells.