In a remote corner of West Texas in 1942, the dreaded western diamondback rattlesnake was awarded the unique distinction of having a mighty airfield named in its honor. Although the installation originally bore the official title of Pyote Army Airfield, the massive quantity of serpents encountered during the construction of the base quickly earned it the nickname of "The Rattlesnake Bomber Base." For the thousands of military men and women who served on the airfield and the additional thousands of civilians who worked there, what is now only a ghostly ruin will always be a vibrant and undying...

On the brink of World War II, Texas was still largely a rural state, a closed society. Few chose to leave, and even fewer outsiders found any reason to enter. A frontier morality dictated adherence to strict moral guidelines regarding temperance, frugality, tolerance, fidelity, and moderation. Cultural activities and educational opportunities were limited.

The state's economic situation was dire as a result of the Great Depression and persistent drought. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, needing to put unemployed men back to work and at the same time begin preparing for a looming war,...

In "The Stars Were Big and Bright, Volume I," Thomas Alexander has created a concise and colorful portrait of Texas during World War II and illustrated how the coming of thousands of strangers in military uniforms forever changed the faces of eight towns and cities across the Lone Star State. Based on extensive on-site research, rich anecdotal material, and personal interviews, the book briefly describes each community, establishing each location's pre-war condition, then analyzes the permanent social and economic impact each wartime airfield had on its host community.

Each of the wars fought by Texans spawned the creation of scores of military sites across the state, from the lonely frontier outpost at Adobe Walls to the once-bustling World War II shipyards of Orange. Today, although vestiges of the sites still exist, many are barely discernible, their once-proud martial trappings now faded by time, neglect, the elements and, most of all, public apathy. ?In "Faded Glory: A Century of Forgotten Texas Military Sites, Then and Now," Thomas E. Alexander and Dan K. Utley revisit twenty-nine sites--many of them largely forgotten--associated with what was...

When a Chickamauga Battlefield ranger was asked where to find the Texas monument, his quick reply was "Go to where the fighting was fiercest." While that spontaneous response accurately underscored the legendary battlefield zeal of the Texas forces in virtually every major Civil War battle, it likely did little to answer the visitor's question.
In this book, the authors will inform visitors to many Civil War battlefields about the heroic role played by the Texans at key sites and why the State of Texas has, over the years, seen fit to officially commemorate the valor of the hard-fighting...

In their previous book, Faded Glory: A Century of Forgotten Texas Military Sites, Then and Now, historians Thomas E. Alexander and Dan K. Utley chose to go beyond the familiar military sites of Texas--the Alamo or the San Jacinto battlefield, for example--to feature lesser known locations. The book successfully recovered these -forgotten- arenas for tourists and preservationists alike. Alexander and Utley now return with Echoes of Glory, and the result is another impressive catalogue that highlights the hidden gems of Texas history.
Echoes of Glory explores two dozen...