Description:
Texas: A Historical Atlas is a compilation of 86 essays supported by 175 vivid and easily understood maps. There are also many photographs, portraits, sketches, representations of forts and battle layouts, and county-specific facts. The atlas describes Texas’ geography, history, and current affairs from the time of the first inhabitants to the present. As Dr. Stephens observes, “The relationship of history and geography can not be separated. One must be aware of the natural features in order to understand and appreciate the activities of inhabitants.”1
This book is divided into three parts: “Natural Texas,” “The Texans,” and “Modern Texas.” The very brief first section (about 7% of the book), “Natural Texas,” is an introduction to the geography, weather, water, and plant life of the state. Half of the atlas is taken up with the second section, “The Texans.” It is divided into six subsections, each discussing one of the major ethnic groups (indigenous, European/American, and Mexican) or pre-twentieth-century historical events and periods that shaped the place known as Texas. This was, for me, the most interesting and engaging part of the atlas. The final section, “Modern Texas, 1900–2009,” has two subsections: “Modern Texas, 1900–1945” and “Contemporary Texas, 1945–2009.”
As I mentioned, the large middle section, “The Texans,” really captured my imagination. The tales of exploration kept me entertained, covering resistance to tyranny, disorganization and defeat, desperate victories against overwhelming odds, the founding of a nation, becoming part of another nation, and fighting for rights that, one eventually comes to realize, maybe weren’t so right. I personally enjoyed piecing together the evolution of Texas over time, and was astonished at aspects I had never before considered. For example, I had never recognized how large a role water played in shaping Texas—in more ways than just political boundaries. Most settlements began near bays, river crossings, or springs. Forts were built to protect those settlements and other key terrain, such as passes and trade routes between settlements. The wagons that blazed those trails between settlements usually followed the path of least resistance, and the road network used today closely resembles the major roads of early Texas.
The main narrative is also sprinkled with informative sidebars. I especially enjoyed the one dealing with “The Variable Vara” (p. 76) describing the use of the Spanish customary length unit in land surveying, and how it is that seven different types of vara came to be used. This book linked events together in such a way that I came to realize just how disorganized the Texas Revolution really was.
The “Modern Texas” section is also substantial, but is far less readable. This section of the book is primarily composed of facts and figures broken down in charts and tables and mapped by county. As a compendium of statistics it is no doubt useful, but after the engaging and dramatic presentation of the previous material, it is a bit tedious.
The essays were contributed by a variety of authors, so no single writing style predominates. All the essays were well written and easily understood, and accompanied by maps, charts, and diagrams which were also well designed, descriptive, and easily understood. Most of the material captured my attention and interest. It was easy, while reading the essays, to follow along on the maps, which were clear and immediately understandable.
One of Dr Stephens’ main goals in publishing Texas: A Historical Atlas was to update and expand on his earlier version of the work, the Historical Atlas of Texas. While I cannot compare this new atlas to the earlier publication, I can vouch for the strengths of this edition. I grew up in Texas, in Live Oak County, and in reading through this book have learned a great deal more about my home state’s history than I had imagined possible. I would definitely recommend Texas: A Historical Atlas as a reference and possibly a text book for Texas history and geography classes, or even generally, for the avid knowit- all Texan.
1Author Interview, undated press release, (Norman, OK: University of Oklahoma Press, 2010).