Stories From Texas
Dr. W.F. Strong, is a Fulbright Scholar and professor of Culture and Communication at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. He brings bits of Texas lore and history for Texans and non-Texans alike.
These are Stories From Texas, some of them are true.
Submissions from 2025
Commentary: John Steinbeck (and Charley) on Texas, William F. Strong
Submissions from 2024
Commentary: Fronters and backers, William F. Strong
Commentary: A tale of a stolen town, William F. Strong
Commentary: The Gruver Farm Scholarship Foundation, William F. Strong
Commentary: Could Napoleon have ruled over Texas?, William F. Strong
Commentary: A second siege of the Alamo, William F. Strong
Commentary: My brush with fate or serendipity, William F. Strong
Some of the best Texans have been Californians – on the silver screen, at least, William F. Strong
Frito pie, a mainstay under Friday night lights, is a Texas original, William F. Strong
Commentary: He who has the gold, makes the rules, William F. Strong
The craziest race you’ve never heard of happened on Padre Island, William F. Strong
Commentary: An AI experiment for Stories from Texas, William F. Strong
Commentary: ‘Counting cattle with the fathers’, William F. Strong
Commentary: Take a drive through the ‘other’ Hill Country, William F. Strong
Commentary: The mystery of the Texas box, William F. Strong
Bonnie and Clyde: Star-synced lovers, William F. Strong
Commentary: New Year’s Eve on Houston Street, William F. Strong
Submissions from 2023
Commentary: The gift of the tidelands, William F. Strong
Commentary: La Pitada, William F. Strong
Commentary: Found in translation, William F. Strong
Commentary: On censorship, William F. Strong
Texas is God’s Country, William F. Strong
How Fort Worth was saved by the railroad, William F. Strong
The historical accuracy of ‘Lonesome Dove’, William F. Strong
Texas Spelling Bee, William F. Strong
The Second Sacking of San Antonio, William F. Strong
The 50th anniversary of ‘The Time It Never Rained’, William F. Strong
Farmer logic, William F. Strong
The story of Sancho, a steer who loved Texas and tamales, William F. Strong
Commentary: It’s my turn, William F. Strong
What is a handshake worth?, William F. Strong
Commentary: Quinta Mazatlan, a garden refuge in McAllen, is an extension of the man who built it, William F. Strong
Tom Hoskins and his ‘Thousand Points of Light’, William F. Strong
The Port Mansfield Cut and the treasure discovered there, William F. Strong
Jesse H. Jones was a model philanthropist, William F. Strong
Submissions from 2022
'Three Red Marbles’ is a story fitting for Thanksgiving, William F. Strong
‘Yonderings’ may be the best travel guide for Big Bend, William F. Strong
How Texas Saved the Buffalo, William F. Strong
Wright Bacon: A Texas original, William F. Strong
Flying to school on my Western Flyer, William F. Strong
Falcon Lake, now at devastatingly low capacity, has a storied history, William F. Strong
In memoriam: A tribute to the 21 lives lost in the Uvalde school shooting (Remembering the Uvalde 21), William F. Strong and Lupita Rodriguez Strong
The Sorcerer’s Cave is the deepest – and possibly longest – cave in Texas, William F. Strong
What happened to Toadsuck, Texas?, William F. Strong
The Pessimistic Farmer (Heard the one about the pessimistic farmer?), William F. Strong
How The Railroad Help Built Texas (Texas Was Built By Railroads), William F. Strong
Givin’ Wordle a Texas twang (Wordle For Texas), William F. Strong
Lyndon Johnson’s Humor, William F. Strong
A Little Test Of Texas’ Official Symbols, William F. Strong
Submissions from 2021
How Ranchers Used Barbed Wire To Make Phone Calls, William F. Strong
That time Jim Bob and Billy Fred went ice fishing, William F. Strong
Why George Washington Brackenridge is Texas’ greatest philanthropist (The Most Generous Texan Of Yore?), William F. Strong
Texas Navigator App, William F. Strong
The Texas bed and breakfast for the peregrine falcon (Peregrine Falcons), William F. Strong
The young lieutenant who crossed the Wild Horse Desert, William F. Strong
Texas And The Art Of Understatement, William F. Strong
Words That Migrated, William F. Strong
France Went Whole Hog On Texas Independence – Until Some Pigs Got In The Way, William F. Strong
Hold My Beer: Get Ready For The Texas Olympics, William F. Strong
Plumbing The Depths Of Jacob’s Well, William F. Strong
For Good And Bad, Texas’ Highways Have Stories To Tell (Miles And Miles Of Texas), William F. Strong
Long Before Elon Musk, A Different Man Had A Plan To Develop Boca Chica, William F. Strong
There’s Something About A Person Named Tex, William F. Strong
Watermelon Season, William F. Strong
The Story of C.H. Guenther, William F. Strong
Don Pedrito: Healer of Los Olmos, William F. Strong
Larry McMurtry and the Lonesome Dove Quadrilogy, William F. Strong
High Security and Low Security Texas, William F. Strong
What’s In A Name? For These Famous Texans, Everything, William F. Strong
The Love Story Behind Tom Lea’s ‘Sarah In The Summertime’, William F. Strong
Lyndon Johnson’s Gifts To Texas, William F. Strong
In Praise Of Vultures, William F. Strong
Stories from Texas Volume II - Chapter 10 - Texas Outside of Texas, William F. Strong
Stories from Texas Volume II - Chapter 11 - Texas Lit, Lyrics and Language, William F. Strong
Stories from Texas Volume II - Chapter 1 - Classic Texas, William F. Strong
Stories from Texas Volume II - Chapter 2 - Cowboys and Lawmen, William F. Strong
Stories from Texas Volume II - Chapter 4 - Just Passing Through, William F. Strong
Stories from Texas Volume II - Chapter 5 - Texas, Legally Speaking, William F. Strong
Stories from Texas Volume II - Chapter 6 - Medical Matters, William F. Strong
Stories from Texas Volume II - Chapter 7 - Legends, Myths, and Folklore, William F. Strong
Stories from Texas Volume II - Chapter 8 - Social Media and Texas, William F. Strong
Stories from Texas Volume II - Chapter 9 - Texas Geography, William F. Strong
Submissions from 2020
A Letter from Texas, William F. Strong
The Texas Connection To Colorado’s Royal Gorge Bridge, William F. Strong
The Queen’s Royal Welcome to Texas, William F. Strong and Lupita Rodriguez Strong
Norfleet: The Texas rancher who kept on coming, William F. Strong
Texas: A State That Loves Its Flag, William F. Strong
The Tragic Story of Dora Hand, William F. Strong
El Llano Estacado, William F. Strong
How Madame Curie’s Philanthropy Inspires Texas Doctors, William F. Strong
Dichos: Nuggets Of Wisdom, William F. Strong and Lupita Rodriguez Strong
Jefferson Davis Highway: The Persistence Of A Confederate Memorial, William F. Strong
How Texas became a desert, William F. Strong
El Rio Bravo, William F. Strong
The Hero Of Cinco De Mayo Was A Texan, William F. Strong
A Texas Cowboy Moves To Montana, William F. Strong
Things ‘Redneck Dave’ Said to Me on the Drive Across Texas, William F. Strong
How A Grassroots Movement Helped End The Polio Epidemic, William F. Strong
Jim Bowie, the original influencer, William F. Strong
The Texas Coral Snake – Beautiful and Occasionally Dangerous, William F. Strong
