1.
Jasper, Texas
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Jasper is a city and the county seat of Jasper County, Texas, in the United States. The population was 8,247 at the 2000 census and 7,590 at the 2010 census, Jasper is situated in the Deep East Texas subregion, about 130 miles northeast of Houston. Jasper holds an annual Butterfly Festival the first Saturday in October to celebrate the migration of the monarch butterflies, the area, which was then part of Mexican Texas, was settled around 1824 by John Bevil. Thirty families occupied the settlement as early as 1830, when it was known as Snow River or Bevils Settlement after John R. Bevil, a hero of the American Revolution. In 1835, the town was renamed after William Jasper, a war hero from the American Revolution, Jasper was one of the 23 original counties when the Republic of Texas was created in 1836. Jasper became the county seat in 1844, becoming part of the United States with the Texas annexation in 1845, during the Civil War, the town housed a Confederate quartermaster depot and served as a major center for Confederate communication, transportation, and supply. Jasper was a Confederate Army headquarters for a nine-county area, following the war, Union troops led by General George Custer occupied Jasper, camping in the town square. The only known soldier of the American Revolution to be buried in Texas was Jasper resident Stephen Williams, the population declined to 360 in 1870, reflecting the hardships of the Civil War, but by 1885 had risen to 1,000. In 1896, Jasper had a population of 1,200, with the arrival of the Gulf, Colorado and Santa Fe Railway early in the 20th century, Jasper grew into a center for the manufacture of timber products. Lumber from two sawmills, with a capacity of 125,000 board feet, goods from basket and stave factories, logs, ties, poles. Jasper served as headquarters for the Lower Neches Valley Authoritys construction program, including Dam B at Town Bluff, local farmers raised broiler chickens and beef, and in the 1950s turned to dairying. Jasper also became the headquarters of the Morgan and Lindsey chain of variety stores, which at one time operated 85 outlets in Texas, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. In June 1998, the murder of James Byrd, Jr. catapulted Jasper into national news and led to the creation of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, three men, William King, Lawrence Russell Brewer, and Shawn Berry, were tried and convicted of capital murder. King and Brewer received the penalty, while Berry, who was the only suspect who cooperated during the investigation and implicated King. Brewer has been put to death, while King still awaits lethal injection, in 2000, Jasper had 8,247 residents and around 250 businesses. Jasper was also one of the locations for the recovery of the Space Shuttle Columbia wreckage in February 2003. Jasper was greatly affected by Hurricane Rita on September 25,2005, the town was also left without power or potable water for about three and a half weeks. In 2012, Jasper returned to attention during a bitterly fought political feud over the hiring and firing of Jasper’s first black police chief
2.
Piney Woods
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These coniferous forests are dominated by several species of pine as well as hardwoods including hickory and oak. The World Wide Fund for Nature considers the Piney Woods to be one of the critically endangered ecoregions of the United States, the United States Environmental Protection Agency defines most of this ecoregion as the South Central Plains. The Piney Woods cover a 54, 400-square-mile area of eastern Texas, northwestern Louisiana, southwestern Arkansas and it receives 40-52 inches of precipitation annually. The region has heavy to moderate rainfall, with some receiving over 60 in of rain per year. Longleaf, shortleaf and loblolly pines, along with bluejack and post oaks, a well-developed understory grows beneath the sparse canopy, and includes yaupon holly and flowering dogwood. Pine savannas consist of scattered longleaf and loblolly pines alongside black tupelos, sweetgums, other common trees in this ecoregion include eastern redbud, southern sugar maple, and American elm. American wisteria, a vine, may cover groves of trees Two varieties of wetlands are common in the Piney Woods, bayous are generally found near rivers, in bayous bald cypress, Spanish moss, and water lilies are common plants. Sloughs are shallow pools of standing water that most trees are not capable of growing in, other species, such as the purple bladderwort, a small carnivorous plant, have found niches in sloughs. Hardy species of prickly pear cactus and yucca can be both in the forests and wetlands. The indigenous Texas trailing phlox, a species, grows in the sandy soils of longleaf pine forests. Birds include sandhill cranes, black and turkey vultures, northern mockingbirds, American alligators are not as common as they once were, but their population has rebounded since the 1960s. Louisiana black bears are rare today, but still live in remote thickets, recently, there has been significant talk of reintroducing the black bear into many parts of East Texas. The most common fish is catfish, which are a native species, crayfish are common along river and creek banks. The Piney Woods Region of the four state area is an area for Bigfoot sightings. One such noted legend is the story of the Fouke Monster of Southern Arkansas, the area according to references lists this area to be the third highest in North America for these such sightings. Melanistic cougars, another probable cryptid, have been noted by residents, the majority of the commercial timber growing and wood processing in the state of Texas takes place in the Piney Woods region, which contains about 50,000 square kilometres of commercial forestland. The preserve contains ten distinct ecosystems according to the National Park Service, big Thicket National Preserve is one of two UNESCO Biosphere Reserves in Texas. The preserve has also listed as a Globally Important Bird Area by the American Bird Conservancy
3.
Tyler County, Texas
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Tyler County is a county located in the U. S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 census, its population was 21,766, Tyler County is named for John Tyler, the tenth President of the United States. Despite its name, Tyler County does not contain the city of Tyler, Texas, according to the U. S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 936 square miles, of which 925 square miles is land and 11 square miles is water. U. S. Highway 69 U. S. Highway 190 U. S, the population density was 23 people per square mile. There were 10,419 housing units at a density of 11 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 84. 0% White,12. 0% Black or African American,0. 4% Native American,0. 2% Asian,0. 02% Pacific Islander,2. 5% from other races, and 1. 1% from two or more races. 3. 6% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race,24. 3% of all households were made up of individuals and 12. 4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.5 and the family size was 2.9. In the county, the population was out with 23. 2% under the age of 18,8. 0% from 18 to 24,27. 2% from 25 to 44,23. 8% from 45 to 64. The median age was 39 years, for every 100 females there were 106.9 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 108.2 males, the median income for a household in the county was $29,808, and the median income for a family was $35,195. Males had an income of $31,797 versus $19,594 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,367, about 12. 6% of families and 15. 8% of the population were below the poverty line, including 21. 0% of those under age 18 and 10. 1% of those age 65 or over. Dry counties in Texas Tyler County Airport
4.
Jasper County, Texas
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Jasper County is a county located in the U. S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 census, its population was 35,710, the county was created as a municipality in Mexico in 1834, and in 1837 was organized as a county in the Republic of Texas. It is named for William Jasper, an American Revolutionary War hero, according to the U. S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 970 square miles, of which 939 square miles is land and 31 square miles is covered by water. U. S. Highway 69 U. S. Highway 96 U. S, the population density was 38 people per square mile. The 16,576 housing units averaged 18 per square mile, about 3. 89% of the population was Hispanic or Latino of any race. About 23% of all households were made up of individuals and 11. 2% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older, the average household size was 2.58 and the average family size was 3.03. In the county, the population was distributed as 26. 50% under the age of 18,8. 00% from 18 to 24,26. 80% from 25 to 44,23. 40% from 45 to 64, the median age was 37 years. For every 100 females, there were 94.60 males, for every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 92.10 males. The median income for a household in the county was $30,902, males had a median income of $31,739 versus $19,119 for females. The per capita income for the county was $15,636, about 15. 00% of families and 18. 10% of the population were below the poverty line, including 23. 40% of those under age 18 and 17. 80% of those age 65 or over. County Judge - Judge Mark W. Allen Commissioner, Pct. #1 - Charles Shofner, Jr. Commissioner, Pct. #2 - Roy Parker Commissioner, Pct. #3 - Willie Stark Commissioner, Pct
5.
Neches River
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The Neches River begins in Van Zandt County east of Rhine Lake and flows for 416 miles through east Texas to its mouth on Sabine Lake near the Rainbow Bridge. Two major reservoirs, Lake Palestine and B. A. Steinhagen Reservoir are located on the Neches. Several cities are located along the Neches River Basin, including Tyler, Lufkin, Silsbee, Evadale, Beaumont, Vidor, Port Neches, Nederland, Groves, with the exception of the manmade lakes, much of the river is in a natural state. For example, from Lake B. A. Steinhagen down to Beaumont and this important ecosphere preserves the area where several ecosystems converge - an event that harkens back to the last glacial period. The Big Thicket Visitor Center is off U. S. Highway 69 several miles north of Kountze, the Lower Neches Valley Authority is the river authority which oversees the Neches River in Tyler, Hardin, Liberty, Chambers, and Jefferson counties of Texas. The United States Fish and Wildlife Service purchased land along the Neches River beginning in 2006 for the creation of the Neches River National Wildlife Refuge. The refuge includes land on which Dallas had proposed to build a reservoir to meet the needs of the city. Tentatively named Lake Fastrill, this reservoir was not scheduled to be built until 2050. However, in February 2010 the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the lower forty miles of the river, from the Beaumont Interstate 10 bridge to Sabine Lake, is industrialized. The river is a deep ship channel running between the Port of Beaumont to Sabine Lake. The channel is currently 40 feet deep and 400 ft wide, the total estimated cost of the Sabine-Neches Waterway project is $1.1 billion. Several petro-chemical plants are located in the rivers southern section. The Sabine-Neches Navigation District, formed in 1909, has management responsibilities of the portion of the river which is part of the Sabine-Neches Waterway, the Port of Beaumont is located on the Neches River at Beaumont, Texas. It begins near the mouth of the river and the Rainbow Bridge, list of Texas rivers USS Neches — a fleet oiler built in 1920. Sabine-Neches Waterway Lower Neches Valley Authority Neches River from the Handbook of Texas Online Fun365Days
6.
Angelina River
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The Angelina River is formed by the junction of Barnhardt and Shawnee creeks 3 miles northwest of Laneville in southwest central Rusk County, Texas. The river flows southeast for 120 miles and forms the boundaries between Cherokee and Nacogdoches, Angelina and Nacogdoches, and Angelina and San Augustine counties and it empties into the Neches River 12 miles north of Jasper in northwestern Jasper County. The Sam Rayburn Reservoir is on the part of the river. The river was named for a native Hasinai girl whom Spanish missionaries called Angelina and it was well known to Spanish and French explorers and to missionaries in East Texas. Spanish land grants along the stream back to the later eighteenth century. In 1832, the Battle of Nacogdoches spilled over onto the Angelina, River traffic on the Angelina began to die in the 1880s with the arrival of the railroads. By 1900, the stream was no longer navigable, farming and clear-cutting by the growing lumber industry in the rivers watershed caused the river to silt up, and numerous sandbars formed along its course. The Angelina River is mentioned in Rivertown by Texan Hayes Carll on his 2005 album Little Rock, mason Williams, in The Rivers of Texas on the album Of Time and Rivers Flowing, says the fair Angelina runs glossy and gliding. List of rivers of Texas U. S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System, Angelina River
7.
U.S. Route 190
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U. S. Route 190 is an east–west United States highway in Louisiana and Texas. It evolved from the shortest of intrastate routes in 1926 to a length comparable to a main Interstate Highway route, leading from the swamps and pine forests of Louisiana to the West Texas desert. It runs east through Texas Hill Country speckled with sage brush, intersecting with State Highway 305, crossing into Schleicher County, just outside Eldorado was where the raid of the Yearning for Zion Ranch gained national attention. Continuing on a northeastward route US190 enters McCulloch County and into Brady, Texas. Being the closest city to the center of Texas, the city proclaims being the True Heart of Texas. Continuing east US190 enters Lampasas County, entering Lometa, merging and running concurrent with U. S. Route 183 south into the city of Lampasas. Splitting from US183 and continuing east, US190 runs through Kempner and into the southern corner of Coryell County. On the east side of Copperas Cove, a concurrency with Interstate 14 begins, US190 then traverses through part of Fort Hood, into Bell County and Killeen. Being directly adjacent to the cantonment of Fort Hood, both Killeen and Copperas Cove depend on the fort and those stationed there. A restaurant in Killeen was the site of one of the worst mass shootings in U. S. history where 23 people were killed. US190 next intersects and merges with I-35 north through Belton and enters Temple, where Interstate 14 ends, continuing east and south US190 passes through Rogers and enters Milam County then Cameron and merges with U. S. Route 77 south for a distance. A few miles south of Cameron US190 merges and runs concurrent with U. S. Route 79 north, continuing east, US190 enters San Jacinto County, passing north of Oakhurst and Point Blank, crossing Lake Livingston, entering Polk County and into Onalaska. East of Woodville FM256 splits north and US190 crosses BA Steinhagen Lake, into Jasper County, intersecting with State Highway 63 east, continuing east US190 travels through Holly Springs enters Newton County and proceeds into Newton. In Newton US190 turns south through Bon Wier, and then crosses the Louisiana line, in Newton County, Texas, US190 has been designated one of the routes on the Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail. The site number attached to the signs denote the location of the sign, the sign in the picture is located on the westbound side of the highway, inside the Texas line, just west of the Welcome to Texas sign near the Sabine River. US190 crosses the Sabine River and enters the western portion of Louisiana in swampy bayou terrain three miles west of Merryville, Louisiana, Merryville is the location of the old Coushatta Indian village. From Merryville the highway heads north by northeast to the community of Junction, Louisiana, Junction is where LA111 and US190 intersect and is the site of a roadside marker and the joining of two Indian trails. US190 runs concurrently with US171 to Ragley, where US190 parts with US171 heading east, from Ragley, the two-lane highway heads nearly due east almost parallel to Interstate 10 until Opelousas
8.
Hydropower
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Hydropower or water power is power derived from the energy of falling water or fast running water, which may be harnessed for useful purposes. A trompe, which compressed air from falling water, is sometimes used to power other machinery at a distance. In the late 19th century, hydropower became a source for generating electricity, cragside in Northumberland was the first house powered by hydroelectricity in 1878 and the first commercial hydroelectric power plant was built at Niagara Falls in 1879. In 1881, street lamps in the city of Niagara Falls were powered by hydropower, since the early 20th century, the term has been used almost exclusively in conjunction with the modern development of hydroelectric power. In China and the rest of the Far East, hydraulically operated pot wheel pumps raised water into crop or irrigation canals, the power of a wave of water released from a tank was used for extraction of metal ores in a method known as hushing. The method was first used at the Dolaucothi Gold Mines in Wales from 75 AD onwards, hushing was also widely used in Britain in the Medieval and later periods to extract lead and tin ores. It later evolved into hydraulic mining when used during the California Gold Rush and these include an endless belt with jugs attached, a cow-powered shadoof, and a reciprocating device with hinged valves. In 1753, French engineer Bernard Forest de Bélidor published Architecture Hydraulique which described vertical-, the growing demand for the Industrial Revolution would drive development as well. At the beginning of the Industrial Revolution in Britain, water was the source of power for new inventions such as Richard Arkwrights water frame. In the 1830s, at the peak in US canal-building, hydropower provided the energy to transport barge traffic up. Technological advances had moved the water wheel into an enclosed turbine or water motor. Francis, while working as engineer of Lowells Locks and Canals company. He applied scientific principles and testing methods to the problem of turbine design and his mathematical and graphical calculation methods allowed confident design of high efficiency turbines to exactly match a sites specific flow conditions. The Francis reaction turbine is still in use today. Hydraulic power networks used pipes to carrying pressurized water and transmit power from the source to end users. The power source was normally a head of water, which could also be assisted by a pump and these were extensive in Victorian cities in the United Kingdom. A hydraulic power network was developed in Geneva, Switzerland. The world-famous Jet dEau was originally designed as the relief valve for the network
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army.