National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature
The National Center for Children’s Illustrated Literature opened in 2000 to showcase the work of storybook artists in a fine-art setting. The light and airy gallery curates about three shows per year, including a summer exhibition of the artist featured during the annual Children's Art and Literacy Festival. “Our mission is to instill the love of art as young as we possibly can, because if you think about it, the first art that children see is in the books they’re reading,” Director Trish Dressen says. “If we can instill that in them young, then we can preserve the love of art for the ages.” Entry is always free. Read More »
The Daytripper Visits the Antiquing Outpost of Round Top for Texas Antiques Week
It may be one of the smallest incorporated towns in Texas (official population: 90), but don’t let that fool you—the little town of Round Top makes for some big trippin’. Visit during the biannual Texas Antiques Week and you’ll find thousands of “junkers” filling every available cow pasture with vintage collectibles. But even on a normal day, this hamlet has plenty of charm. Read More »
History, Art, and Colorful Fall Foliage Distinguish the Great Plains Town of Canadian
Not far from the banks of the Canadian River, tucked among the River Valley Pioneer Museum’s artifacts of Panhandle ranching and railroad history, black-and-white portraits gaze from the gallery wall as if they’ve been waiting patiently for a century to look you in the eye. Read More »
Help Yourself to Sausage, Biscuits, and a Side of History at the King Ranch
My kids know I’m happy to travel for a meal, particularly when huevos are involved, but in their minds, this was pushing it. The night before, we’d driven more than three hours across the dark, South Texas landscape to Kingsville. Now, on a Saturday morning, they were back in the car just before dawn. “But look at the light, it’s beautiful!” I told them, pointing to the horizon. “Besides, this is not just any breakfast,” I promised. “It’s a chance to experience Texas history on one of the most famous ranches in the world.” Read More »
Explore Frontier Life in San Antonio at the Yturri-Edmunds Home
Before the first railroad line reached San Antonio in 1877, the villa was known as “the city of adobes,” according to an 1887 article in the San Antonio Daily Express. Along with rock, adobe was cited as the most common construction material. Another report in the Express noted that local adobe buildings would “endure forever almost.” Read More »
Any Day Above Ground Is a Good One at the Quirky National Museum of Funeral History
For the past eight years, the treasury of exhibits about the cultural practices and traditions surrounding death has hosted a haunted maze during the month of October. The president and curator of the museum, Genevieve Keeney, says it takes great pains to make sure the event is a good time for all ages. Read More »
Ray Wylie Hubbard Revisits the Snake Farm That Inspired His Famous Song
Any good songwriter knows when the muse strikes, write it down. For Ray Wylie Hubbard, it was maybe the 10,000th time he was driving southbound on Interstate 35 from New Braunfels toward San Antonio, passing Exit 182 at Engel Road and the so-big-you-can’t-miss-it sign that screamed “SNAKE FARM” in red and black letters. The words, meant to entice drivers to stop at the long-running roadside attraction, conjured the image of a farm full of snakes, and Hubbard physically shuddered. Read More »
Has Brenham Become the Hamptons of Texas?
There aren’t enough synonyms for “quaint” in describing Brenham, that rare landlocked town that feels like it should have a lighthouse. Arranged around an Art Deco courthouse which, built in 1939, is one of the newer buildings downtown, Brenham keeps history in its place. Read More »
The Daytripper Explores Nocona’s Leatherworking Roots
I don’t go trippin’ to North Texas as much as I’d like to, so in the hopes of finding a new adventure I hopped on the highway and drove as far north as it would take me (without landing in Oklahoma). And what I found was Nocona, a fascinating town with a storied leatherworking tradition. Read More »
Savor the Last of Summer with These 4 Family-Friendly Adventures on South Padre Island
SPI Sites For South Padre travel information, visit the South Padre Island Visitors Center at 610 ... Read More »
Gladewater Offers Walkable Shopping and Dining in East Texas’ Antique Capital
With its old buildings, passing trains, vintage shops, and faded storefronts, Gladewater can seem like a relic from a bygone era. Elvis Presley used to play here. So did Johnny Cash. But in another sense, Gladewater is modern: The recent arrival of a brewpub and the opening six years ago of a bed-and-breakfast have turned the official “Antique Capital of East Texas” into one of the most walkable downtowns around. Read More »
How the Indie Bookstore Interabang Books Became the Hub of Dallas’ Literary Scene
A long-smoldering literary scene is catching fire in Dallas, with its book festivals, writing conferences, and poetry readings, not to mention a resident first lady in Laura Bush who founded both the Texas and National book festivals. But the dearth of independent bookstores in a city known for its vibrant retail scene always put a damper on its bookish aspirations—until now. Read More »
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