1.
Amusement park
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An amusement park or theme park is a group of entertainment attractions, rides, and other events in a location for the enjoyment of large numbers of people. Theme parks, a type of amusement park, are usually much more intricately themed to a certain subject or group of subjects than normal amusement parks. Amusement parks evolved from European fairs and pleasure gardens, which were created for peoples recreation, Worlds fairs and expositions were another influence on the development of the amusement park industry. In common language, the theme park and amusement park are often synonymous. However, a park can be regarded as a distinct style of amusement park. A theme park has landscaping, buildings, and attractions that are based on one or more specific themes or stories. The amusement park evolved from three earlier traditions, the oldest being the periodic fair of the Middle Ages - one of the earliest was the Bartholomew Fair in England, the worlds oldest amusement park appeared in the Continent. Bakken at Klampenborg, north of Copenhagen, Denmark, opened in 1583, a wave of innovation in the 1860s and 1870s created mechanical rides, such as the steam-powered carousel, and its derivatives. This inaugurated the era of the modern funfair ride, as the classes were increasingly able to spend their surplus wages on entertainment. The second influence was the pleasure garden, one of the earliest gardens was the Vauxhall Gardens, founded in 1661 in London. By the late 18th century, the site had a fee for its many attractions. It regularly drew crowds, with its paths being noted for romantic assignations, tightrope walkers, hot air balloon ascents, concerts. Although the gardens were designed for the elites, they soon became places of great social diversity. Public firework displays were put on at Marylebone Gardens, and Cremorne Gardens offered music, dancing, prater in Vienna, Austria, was opened in 1766. The concept of a park for amusement was further developed with the beginning of the worlds fairs. The first World fair began in 1851 with the construction of the landmark Crystal Palace in London, the purpose of the exposition was to celebrate the industrial achievement of the nations of the world and it was designed to educate and entertain the visitors. American cities and business saw the worlds fair as a way of demonstrating economic. The Worlds Columbian Exposition of 1893 in Chicago, Illinois was an precursor to the modern amusement park
2.
Water park
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Water parks in more current states of development may also be equipped with some type of artificial surfing or bodyboarding environment such as a wave pool or FlowRider. Water parks have grown in popularity since their introduction in the late 1940s, the United States has the largest and most concentrated water park market, with over a thousand water parks and dozens of new parks opening each year. Major organizations are IAAPA and WWA, which is the trade association. Water parks which emerge from spas tend to closely resemble mountain resorts. For example, Splash Universe Water Park Resort, a member of the WWA, is themed to match the community in which it is located, the theme is intended to enhance the communitys destination appeal. Therefore, the amusement and leisure-time industry is becoming more concentrated, a process of concentration can be observed in the hybrid versions of theme-, amusement-, and water parks. Some water parks are more spa-oriented, for example, SchwabenQuellen, a member of European Waterpark Association, has no water slides, it has instead many saunas, steam rooms, adventure showers, and relaxation-oriented water play areas. In the 2000s, an effort was made to reduce long waiting lines by introducing conveyor belts to lift passengers or use water jets, an unusual feature at a water park is ice skating. Deep River Water Park in northwestern Indiana features ice skating, made possible by cooling pipes installed under their massive plaza during a recent expansion. The first-ever indoor water park was built in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, World Waterpark is the worlds second largest indoor water park, at over 225,000 sq ft in size. It includes the worlds largest indoor pool, water slides of varying degrees, tube rides, bungee jumping. Tropical Islands Resort, with an area of 710,000 sq ft, is currently the largest indoor water park in the world, with five indoor water parks, Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, is recognized as the Water Park Capital of the World. It showcases several of Americas largest indoor and outdoor water parks, indoor water parks in Wisconsin Dells debuted in 1994 after the Polynesian Resort Hotel built the first one in the U. S. Success in extending the tourist season and turning water park resorts into vacation destinations has resulted in tremendous industry growth, usually, resort hotels featuring massive indoor water parks have been reserved for overnight guests. Companies like Great Wolf Resorts/Great Wolf Lodge and Kalahari Resorts have branched out from their origin in Wisconsin Dells to open new locations around the country, mt. Olympus Theme and Water Park is another huge water park in the Dells. The largest indoor water park in the UK is Sandcastle Water Park in Blackpool, England, there are many water parks in southern Europe where the climate suits a long season. For example, in Portugal on the Algarve there are three main parks - Aqualand, Aquashow, and Slide and Splash. Water play areas are similar to parks and include urban beaches, splash pads
3.
New Braunfels, Texas
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New Braunfels is a city in Comal and Guadalupe counties in the U. S. state of Texas. It is the seat of Comal County and is a city of the San Antonio–New Braunfels metropolitan statistical area. The citys population was 57,740 at the 2010 census, New Braunfels was established in 1845 by Prince Carl of Solms-Braunfels, Commissioner General of the Adelsverein, also known as the Noblemens Society. Prince Solms named the settlement in honor of his home of Solms-Braunfels, the Adelsverein organized hundreds of people in Germany to settle in Texas. Immigrants from Germany began arriving at Galveston in July 1844, most then traveled by ship to Indianola in December 1844, and began the overland journey to the Fisher-Miller land grant purchased by Prince Solms. Prince Solms bought two leagues of land from Rafael Garza and Maria Antonio Veramendi Garza for $1,111.00. The land was located northeast of San Antonio on El Camino Real de los Tejas and had the strong freshwater Comal Springs, known as Las Fontanas and it was about halfway between Indianola and the lower portions of the Fisher-Miller land grant. The first settlers forded the Guadalupe River on Good Friday, March 21,1845, as the spring of 1845 progressed, the settlers built the Zinkenburg, a fort named for Adelsverein civil engineer Nicolaus Zink, divided the land, and began building homes and planting crops. Prince Solms would also lay the cornerstone for the Sophienburg, a permanent fort, in 1844, Prince Solms was so disillusioned with the logistics of the colonization that he asked the Vereins to remove him as Commissioner-General and appoint a successor. When John O. Meusebach arrived, the finances were in disarray, due in part to Prince Solms lack of business experience, to a larger degree, the financial situation happened because the Adelsverein was an organization of noblemen with no practical backgrounds at running businesses. They were on the side of the world and did not witness the situation with which both Prince Solms and Meusebach were dealing. Henry Francis Fisher had not supplied transport and supplies for which the Verein advanced money to him, Meusebach found Prince Solms in Galveston trying to return to Germany, detained by authorities for unpaid bills. Meusebach made good on the debts, so Prince Solms could depart, according to Nicolaus Zink, Prince Solms had planned to establish a German feudal state by secretly bringing in immigrants and placing them in military fortresses. Meusebach, who had renounced his own title of nobility, took a different approach, Prince Solms, being an officer of the Imperial Army of Austria, had kept a uniformed military unit at the ready in Indianola. Meusebach converted the unit to a more needed work detail. A finance and business structure for the colony was put in place by Meusebach and he also provided for adequate food and shelter for the colonists. On August 11,1845, Hermann Friedrich Seele became the first teacher for the German-English school in New Braunfels, Meusebach established friendly relations with a local tribe of Waco Indians. Upon seeing his reddish-blonde hair, they called him Ma-be-quo-si-to-mu, Chief with the hair of the head
4.
Texas
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Texas is the second largest state in the United States by both area and population. Other major cities include Austin, the second most populous state capital in the U. S. Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State to signify its former status as an independent republic, and as a reminder of the states struggle for independence from Mexico. The Lone Star can be found on the Texan state flag, the origin of Texass name is from the word Tejas, which means friends in the Caddo language. Due to its size and geologic features such as the Balcones Fault, although Texas is popularly associated with the U. S. southwestern deserts, less than 10 percent of Texas land area is desert. Most of the centers are located in areas of former prairies, grasslands, forests. Traveling from east to west, one can observe terrain that ranges from coastal swamps and piney woods, to rolling plains and rugged hills, the term six flags over Texas refers to several nations that have ruled over the territory. Spain was the first European country to claim the area of Texas, Mexico controlled the territory until 1836 when Texas won its independence, becoming an independent Republic. In 1845, Texas joined the United States as the 28th state, the states annexation set off a chain of events that caused the Mexican–American War in 1846. A slave state before the American Civil War, Texas declared its secession from the U. S. in early 1861, after the Civil War and the restoration of its representation in the federal government, Texas entered a long period of economic stagnation. One Texan industry that thrived after the Civil War was cattle, due to its long history as a center of the industry, Texas is associated with the image of the cowboy. The states economic fortunes changed in the early 20th century, when oil discoveries initiated a boom in the state. With strong investments in universities, Texas developed a diversified economy, as of 2010 it shares the top of the list of the most Fortune 500 companies with California at 57. With a growing base of industry, the leads in many industries, including agriculture, petrochemicals, energy, computers and electronics, aerospace. Texas has led the nation in export revenue since 2002 and has the second-highest gross state product. The name Texas, based on the Caddo word tejas meaning friends or allies, was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves, during Spanish colonial rule, the area was officially known as the Nuevo Reino de Filipinas, La Provincia de Texas. Texas is the second largest U. S. state, behind Alaska, though 10 percent larger than France and almost twice as large as Germany or Japan, it ranks only 27th worldwide amongst country subdivisions by size. If it were an independent country, Texas would be the 40th largest behind Chile, Texas is in the south central part of the United States of America. Three of its borders are defined by rivers, the Rio Grande forms a natural border with the Mexican states of Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and Tamaulipas to the south
5.
Water slide
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A water slide is a type of slide designed for warm-weather or indoor recreational use at water parks. Water slides differ in their method and therefore size. Some slides require riders to sit directly on the slide, or on a raft or tube designed to be used with the slide, a typical water slide uses a pump system to pump water to the top which is then allowed to freely flow down its surface. The water reduces friction so sliders travel down the slide very quickly, Water slides run into a swimming pool or a long run-out chute. A lifeguard is usually stationed at the top and the bottom of the slide, as the name suggests, body slides feature no mat and require the person to sit directly on the surface of the slide. There are a variety of types of body slides including simple flumes, speed slides, bowls, some slides are designed to be ridden with a tube which typically seats either 2 or 3 riders inline. Similar to a body slide, these slides include many twists and turns and come in a variety of types including bowls, funnels. The worlds longest water slide was an installation in Waimauku, New Zealand. Constructed with a length of 650 metres, of which 550 metres functioned properly and its creators claimed the previous record holder had a length of ~350 metres. The longest multi-person water-coaster is the 1,763 foot long Mammoth at Holiday World in Santa Claus, the first known existence of a looping water slide was at Action Park in Vernon, New Jersey in the mid-1980s. Their water slide featured a loop but was repeatedly closed due to safety concerns. In the late 2000s, Austrian manufacturer Aquarena developed the worlds first safe looping water slide and their engineering featured an inclined loop rather than a standard vertical one. The slide is currently licensed and distributed by Canadian water slide manufacturer WhiteWater West, there are nearly 20 AquaLoop installations around the world. The first installation was in Slovenia in 2008, the largest collection is located at WetnWild Water World in Australia which houses 4 AquaLoops that opened in 2010. WetnWild Water World was also the first to install more than one AquaLoop at a single location, the AquaLoop uses a trap-door to release riders down a 17-metre near-vertical descent at a speed of up to 60 kilometres per hour. Riders experience 2.5 Gs in less than 2 seconds, the whole ride is over within 7 seconds. A bowl is a type of water slide where riders descend a steep drop into a round bowl and they then circle the outer area of the bowl before exiting down through the middle. This style of water comes in various styles and is manufactured by ProSlide, WhiteWater West
6.
Corpus Christi, Texas
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Corpus Christi, colloquially Corpus, is a coastal city in the South Texas region of the U. S. state of Texas. The county seat of Nueces County, it extends into Aransas, Kleberg. It is 130 miles southeast of San Antonio and its political boundaries encompass Nueces Bay and Corpus Christi Bay. Its zoned boundaries include small land parcels or water inlets of three neighboring counties, the citys population was estimated to be 320,434 in 2014, making it the eighth-most populous city in Texas. The Corpus Christi metropolitan area had an population of 442,600. It is also the hub of the six-county Corpus Christi-Kingsville-Alice Combined Statistical Area, the Port of Corpus Christi is the fifth-largest in the United States. The region is served by the Corpus Christi International Airport, the citys name means Body of Christ in Latin. The name was given to the settlement and surrounding bay by Spanish explorer Alonso Álvarez de Pineda in 1519, the citys nickname is Sparkling City by the Sea, particularly featured in tourist literature. Corpus Christi was founded in 1839 by Colonel Henry Lawrence Kinney and William P. Aubrey as Kinneys Trading Post and it was a small trading post that sold supplies to a Mexican revolutionary army camped about 25 mi west. In July 1845, U. S. troops commanded by General Zachary Taylor set up there in preparation for war with Mexico. About a year later, the settlement was named Corpus Christi and was incorporated on 9 September 1852, the Battle of Corpus Christi was fought between August 12 and August 18,1862, during the American Civil War. United States Navy forces blockading Texas fought a land and sea engagement with Confederate forces in and around Corpus Christi Bay. Union forces defeated Confederate States Navy ships operating in the area, the Port of Corpus Christi was opened in 1926, and the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station was commissioned in 1941. The 1919 Storm devastated the city, killing hundreds on September 14, only three structures survived the storm on North Beach. To protect the city, the seawall was built, the city also suffered damage from Hurricane Celia in 1970 and Hurricane Allen in 1980, but little damage from Hurricane Ike in 2008. In November 1873, seven Mexican shepherds were lynched by a mob near the city, in February 1929, the League of United Latin American Citizens was founded in Corpus Christi. This organization was created to battle racial discrimination against Hispanic people in the United States, since its founding, LULAC has grown and now has a national headquarters in Washington, D. C. In March 1949, the American GI Forum was founded in Corpus Christi, currently, AGIF focuses on veterans issues, education, and civil rights issues
7.
Fort Lauderdale, Florida
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Fort Lauderdale /ˌfɔərt ˈlɔːdərdeɪl/ is a city in the U. S. state of Florida,28 miles north of Miami. It is the county seat of Broward County, as of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 165,521. It is a city of the Miami metropolitan area, which was home to an estimated 6,012,331 people at the 2015 census. The city is a popular tourist destination, with an average temperature of 75.5 °F and 3,000 hours of sunshine per year. Greater Fort Lauderdale which takes in all of Broward County hosted 12 million visitors in 2012, the district has 561 hotels and motels comprising nearly 35,000 rooms. Forty six cruise ships sailed from Port Everglades in 2012, greater Fort Lauderdale has over 4,000 restaurants,63 golf courses,12 shopping malls,16 museums,132 nightclubs,278 parkland campsites, and 100 marinas housing 45,000 resident yachts. Fort Lauderdale is named after a series of forts built by the United States during the Second Seminole War, the forts took their name from Major William Lauderdale, younger brother of Lieutenant Colonel James Lauderdale. William Lauderdale was the commander of the detachment of soldiers who built the first fort, however, development of the city did not begin until 50 years after the forts were abandoned at the end of the conflict. The area in which the city of Fort Lauderdale would later be founded was inhabited for more two thousand years by the Tequesta Indians. For the Tequesta, disease, coupled with continuing conflict with their Calusa neighbors, although control of the area changed between Spain, United Kingdom, the United States, and the Confederate States of America, it remained largely undeveloped until the 20th century. The Fort Lauderdale area was known as the New River Settlement before the 20th century, in the 1830s there were approximately 70 settlers living along the New River. William Cooley, the local Justice of the Peace, was a farmer and wrecker, who traded with the Seminole Indians. On January 6,1836, while Cooley was leading an attempt to salvage a ship, a band of Seminoles attacked his farm, killing his wife and children. The first United States stockade named Fort Lauderdale was built in 1838, the fort was abandoned in 1842, after the end of the war, and the area remained virtually unpopulated until the 1890s. The city was incorporated in 1911, and in 1915 was designated the county seat of newly formed Broward County, Fort Lauderdales first major development began in the 1920s, during the Florida land boom of the 1920s. The 1926 Miami Hurricane and the Great Depression of the 1930s caused a deal of economic dislocation. In July 1935, an African-American man named Rubin Stacy was accused of robbing a woman at knife point. He was arrested and being transported to a Miami jail when police were run off the road by a mob, a group of 100 white men proceeded to hang Stacy from a tree near the scene of his alleged robbery
8.
The Washington Post
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The Washington Post is an American daily newspaper. It is the most widely circulated newspaper published in Washington, D. C. and was founded on December 6,1877 and its current slogan is Democracy Dies in Darkness. Located in the city of the United States, the newspaper has a particular emphasis on national politics. Daily editions are printed for the District of Columbia, Maryland, the newspaper is published as a broadsheet, with photographs printed both in color and in black and white. The newspaper has won 47 Pulitzer Prizes and this includes six separate Pulitzers awarded in 2008, the second-highest number ever awarded to a single newspaper in one year, second only to The New York Times seven awards in 2002. Post journalists have also received 18 Nieman Fellowships and 368 White House News Photographers Association awards, in years since, its investigations have led to increased review of the Walter Reed Army Medical Center. In 2013, its owners, the Graham family, sold the newspaper to billionaire entrepreneur. The newspaper is owned by Nash Holdings LLC, a holding company Bezos created for the acquisition, the Washington Post is generally regarded as one of the leading daily American newspapers, along with The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. The Post has distinguished itself through its reporting on the workings of the White House, Congress. It is one of the two daily broadsheets published in Washington D. C. the other being its smaller rival The Washington Times, unlike The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post does not print an edition for distribution away from the East Coast. In 2009, the newspaper ceased publication of its National Weekly Edition, the majority of its newsprint readership is in District of Columbia and its suburbs in Maryland and Northern Virginia. The Sunday Style section differs slightly from the weekday Style section, it is in a tabloid format, and it houses the reader-written humor contest The Style Invitational. Additional weekly sections appear on weekdays, Health & Science on Tuesday, Food on Wednesday, Local Living on Thursday, the latter two are in a tabloid format. In November 2009, it announced the closure of its U. S. regional bureaus—Chicago, Los Angeles and New York—as part of a focus on. political stories. The newspaper has bureaus in Maryland and Virginia. While its circulation has been slipping, it has one of the highest market-penetration rates of any metropolitan news daily, for many decades, the Post had its main office at 1150 15th Street NW. This real estate remained with Graham Holdings when the newspaper was sold to Jeff Bezos Nash Holdings in 2013, Graham Holdings sold 1150 15th Street for US$159 million in November 2013. The Washington Post continued to lease space at 1150 L Street NW, in May 2014, The Washington Post leased the west tower of One Franklin Square, a high-rise building at 1301 K Street NW in Washington, D. C
9.
Kansas City, Kansas
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Kansas City is the third-largest city in the state of Kansas, the county seat of Wyandotte County, and the third-largest city of the Kansas City metropolitan area. It is part of a consolidated city-county government known as the Unified Government, Wyandotte County also includes the independent cities of Bonner Springs and Edwardsville. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 145,786 residents and it is situated at Kaw Point, which is the junction of the Missouri and Kansas rivers. In October 1872, old Kansas City, Kansas, was incorporated, the first city election was held on October 22 of that year, by order of Judge Hiram Stevens of the Tenth Judicial District, and resulted in the election of Mayor James Boyle. The mayors of the city after its organization were James Boyle, C. A. Eidemiller, A. S. Orbison, Eli Teed, in June 1880, the Governor of Kansas proclaimed the city of Kansas City a city of the second class with Mayor McConnell present. In March 1886, new Kansas City, Kansas, was formed through the consolidation of five municipalities, old Kansas City, Armstrong, Armourdale, Riverview, the oldest city of the group was Wyandotte, which was formed in 1857 by Wyandot Native Americans and Methodist missionaries. In the 1890s, the city saw a growth in population as a streetcar suburb of Kansas City, Missouri, from which it takes its name. It was one of the nations 100 largest cities for many U. S. Census counts, from 1890 to 1960, including 1920, when it had a population of over 100,000 residents for the first time. As with adjacent Kansas City, Missouri, the percentage of the citys most populous ethnic group, in 1997, voters approved a proposition to unify the city and county governments creating the Unified Government of Wyandotte County. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 128.38 square miles. Neighborhoods of Kansas City, Kansas, include the following, Downtown Argentine − former home to the silver smelter for which it was named, Armourdale − formerly a city, it was consolidated with the city of Kansas City in 1886. Armstrong − a town absorbed by Wyandotte, bethel − a neighborhood located generally along Leavenworth Rd. between 72nd and 77th Streets. It was never incorporated as a municipality, Fairfax District − an industrial area along the Missouri River. Nearman Piper Pomeroy − a late-19th—early-20th-century Train Depot, Trading Post, Saw Mill, Riverview Rosedale − merged with Kansas City in 1922. Stony Point Strawberry Hill Turner − community around the Wyandotte-Johnson County border to the Kansas River north-south, unless otherwise stated, normal figures below are based on data from 1981 to 2010 at Downtown Airport. The warmest month of the year is July, with a 24-hour average temperature of 81.0 °F, the summer months are hot, but can get very hot and moderately humid, with moist air riding up from the Gulf of Mexico. High temperatures surpass 100 °F on 5.6 days of the year, the coldest month of the year is January, with an average temperature of 31.0 °F. Winters are cold, with 22 days where the high is at or below the mark and 2.5 nights with a low at or below 0 °F
10.
Galveston, Texas
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Galveston is a coastal resort city on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U. S. state of Texas. The community of 209.3 square miles, with a population of 50,180 in 2015, is the county seat. It is within Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land metropolitan area, the Port of Galveston was established in 1825 by the Congress of Mexico following its independence from Spain. The city was the port for the Texas Navy during the Texas Revolution. During the 19th century, Galveston became a major U. S. commercial center and it was devastated by the 1900 Galveston Hurricane, whose effects included flooding and a storm surge. The natural disaster on the barrier island is still ranked as the deadliest in United States history. Much of Galvestons economy is centered in the tourism, health care, shipping, the 84-acre University of Texas Medical Branch campus with an enrollment of more than 2,500 students is a major economic force of the city. Galveston Island was originally inhabited by members of the Karankawa and Akokisa tribes who called the island Auia, the Spanish explorer Cabeza de Vaca and his crew were shipwrecked on the island or nearby in November 1528, calling it Isla de Malhado. They began their trek to a Spanish settlement in Mexico City. During his charting of the Gulf Coast in 1785, the Spanish explorer José de Evia named the island Villa Gálvez or Gálveztown in honor of Bernardo de Gálvez y Madrid, Count of Gálvez. The islands first permanent European settlements were constructed around 1816 by the pirate Louis-Michel Aury to support Mexicos rebellion against Spain, in 1817, Aury returned from an unsuccessful raid against Spain to find Galveston occupied by the pirate Jean Lafitte. Lafitte organized Galveston into a kingdom he called Campeche, anointing himself the islands head of government. Lafitte remained in Galveston until 1821, when the United States Navy forced him, in 1825 the Congress of Mexico established the Port of Galveston and in 1830 erected a customs house. Galveston served as the capital of the Republic of Texas when in 1836 the interim president David G. Burnet relocated his government there. In 1836, the French-Canadian Michel Branamour Menard and several associates purchased 4,605 acres of land for $50,000 to found the town that would become the city of Galveston. As Anglo-Americans migrated to the city, they brought along or purchased enslaved African-Americans, some of whom worked domestically or on the waterfront, in 1839, the City of Galveston adopted a charter and was incorporated by the Congress of the Republic of Texas. The city was by then a port of entry and attracted many new residents in the 1840s and later among the flood of German immigrants to Texas. Together with ethnic Mexican residents, these tended to oppose slavery, support the Union during the Civil War
11.
Padre Island
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Padre Island is the largest of the Texas barrier islands and is the worlds longest barrier island. It is part of the U. S. state of Texas, the island is located along Texas southern coast of the Gulf of Mexico and is noted for its white sandy beaches at the south end. He also founded the first mission in present-day Cameron County, Padre Island is the second-largest island by area in the contiguous United States, after Long Island in New York on the Atlantic Coast. It is about 113 miles long and 1.8 miles wide, stretching from the city of Corpus Christi, in the north, the island is oriented north-south, bordered by the Gulf of Mexico on the east, and Laguna Madre on the west. The islands northern end connects to Mustang Island by roadway, the southern end of the island is separated from Brazos Island by the Brazos Santiago Pass. The town of South Padre Island is located on its southern end, since 1964, the island has been divided by the artificial Port Mansfield Channel. The terms North Padre Island and South Padre Island are often used to refer to the portions of the island. Padre Island is included within the jurisdictions of Cameron, Kenedy, Kleberg, Nueces, the island was used and occupied seasonally by the Karankawa Indians at the time of European encounter. During Spanish rule, Father José Nicolás Ballí, owned the island in the 19th century, Padre Island had been granted in 1759 to his Spanish colonist grandfather, Nicolás Ballí, by King Charles III of Spain. The younger Ballís parents were both Spanish immigrants to Mexico and owned vast amounts of land by royal grants, José Nicolás Ballí served as a secular priest and missionary, he also managed large amounts of land where he ran a ranching operation. In 1804 he founded the first ethnic Mexican settlement on the island as the town of El Rancho Santa Cruz de Buena Vista, in 1827 after Mexico achieved independence, Father Ballí requested a clear title to the property of Padre Island. His mother Rosa María Hinojosa de Ballí had made a joint application with him for eleven leagues of the island, after Ballí died in 1829, the government granted title to the island to him posthumously, issued jointly in his name and that of his nephew Juan José Ballí. He had bequeathed half the island to his nephew, who had worked with him on his ranch, geologically speaking, Padre Island is a young island, having formed in just the last several thousand years. It is one of 300 barrier islands stretching from Maine to Mexico and these natural barrier islands act to protect the mainland from the direct onslaught of storms. Padre Island began forming as a sand bar some 4500 years ago. Geologic speculation indicates the island may be 1000 to 1500 years younger. It is theorized that Padre Island formed from offshore shoals, with later growth aided by spit accretion, after a history of shifting, abandonment and reestablishment by storm breaches, many tidal inlets were slowly closed. Short islands were joined to form todays longer islands, Padre Island graphically illustrates the life and sequences of a barrier shoreline, accretionary or building phase, equilibrium or stability phase, and erosion or destructional state
12.
Cedar Park, Texas
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Cedar Park is a city in Williamson County in the State of Texas. The population was 48937 at the 2010 census, according to the 2016 Census Estimate, the population is 70,614. A small portion of the city extends into neighboring Travis County, the city is a major suburb of Austin, the center of which is approximately 16 miles to the southeast. Cedar Park is located at 30°30′24″N 97°49′49″W and it lies mostly in Williamson County, although a small amount extends into Travis County. According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has an area of 25.6 sq mi, of which,25.3 sq mi of it is land. Cedar Park is generally bisected north to south by U. S. Route 183, a bypass route, the 183A toll road, also runs through Cedar Park and opened to traffic on March 15,2007. Major east-west routes include RM-1431/Whitestone Boulevard and Cypress Creek/Brushy Creek Road, Cedar Park was incorporated in 1973 with a council-manager system of local government. The mayor and councilmembers place two, place four and place six are elected in even years, councilmembers place one, place three and place five are elected in odd years. Cedar Park is represented in Texas House of Representatives by former Cedar Park Councilmember Republican Tony Dale, in the State Senate, Cedar Park is represented by Republican Charles Schwertner. Cedar Park is home to two minor league professional teams. The Texas Stars of the American Hockey League and the Austin Spurs of the NBA Development League both play home games at the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park, a major public skate park facility opened in Cedar Park in July 2010. The 15, 000-square-foot facility features a bowl, mini bowl. Cedar Park is served primarily by the Leander Independent School District, and is home to the Cedar Park High School Timberwolves, Cedar Park won its first football state championship on December 21,2012. The Timberwolves defeated Lancaster 17-7 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, winning the Class 4A, in 2015, the Timberwolves won both state titles in Band and Football with the latter beating Frisco Lone Star for the Class 5a, Division II state championship. Cedar Park High school is the only Texas high school to win UIL state titles in both band and football in the same year, neighborhoods in the southern and easternmost areas of the city are wholly or partially served by the Round Rock Independent School District. Some of these neighborhoods or the Ranch at Brushy Creek, or Walsh Trails, some elementary schools that serve these neighborhoods are Old Town, or Patsy Sommer. The middle school Walsh, and the high school Round Rock also serve these areas, the city is home to the Cypress Creek campus of Austin Community College, which was significantly expanded in 2008 to accommodate the areas growing population. The Texas Psychological Association is located in the city, the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park was completed in 2009 and hosts a wide array of live entertainment events
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