Judy Alter

By 1900, the tale of the 300 Texians who died in the 1836 battle of the Alamo had already become legend. But to corporate interests in the growing City of San Antonio, the land where that blood was shed was merely a desirable plot of land across the street from new restaurants and hotels, with only a few remaining crumbling buildings to tell the tale. When two women, Adina Emilia De Zavala, the granddaughter of the first vice-president of the Texas Republic, and Clara Driscoll, the daughter of one of Texas’s most prominent ranch families and first bankers, learned of the plans, they hatched a plan to preserve the site—and in so doing, they reinvigorated both the legend and lore of the Alamo and cemented the site’s status as hallowed ground. But the story of the battle the two women started with each other reverberates to this day. These two strong-willed, pioneering women were very different, but the story of how they banded together and how the Alamo became what it is today despite those differences, is compelling reading for those interested in Texas history and Texas’s larger-than-life personality.

A cookbook that includes over 160 recipes, from appetizers to desserts.

Don Martin De Leon was the only Tejano empresario to settle a colony in Texas, in the days before statehood. Other empresarios, such as Moses Austin and Sterling C. Robertson, were Anglos who had been drawn to Texas by the lure of land. De Leon established his colony in southeast Texas, near the Gulf Coast, and founded the city of Victoria. He and his six sons governed the colony. Though Don Martin died in 1833, his sons actively supported the Texas fight for independence by giving money and goods to the Texas Volunteers. But the family suffered from a general prejudice against people of Mexican descent - they lost their land and livestock and had to leave Texas. They returned in the late 1840s, but they no longer had the immense holdings of land and cattle that Don Martin had accumulated. In 1972, the De Leon family was honored with Texas state historical markers on family graves in Evergreen Cemetery in Victoria. Finally, Martin De Leon and his family are recognized for their loyalty to Texas, their support of the Texas Revolution, and their contributions to the Republic of Texas. ""Martin De Leon"" is the fourth title in ""The Stars of Texas"" series, aimed at fourth graders studying for the Texas history section of the TAKS test. The first two books in the series, ""Henrietta King: Rancher and Philanthropist"" and ""Mirabeau B. Lamar: Second President of Texas"", have been chosen for the Accelerated Reader program, and Henrietta King was a Spur Award finalist. Free workbooks for all ""Stars of Texas"" series books are available on-line.

Miriam Ferguson was a quiet, private person who preferred to stay home in her big house in Temple, Texas, and take care of her husband, raise her two daughters, and tend to her flower garden. But in 1923 she was elected governor of Texas, the first women governor elected in the United States. Her husband, Jim Ferguson, served two terms as governor, but during his second term he was impeached, which meant he could not run again for public office. So Miriam agreed to run to clear his name and restore the family's honor. She served two terms as governor: from 1925 to 1927 and from 1933 to 1935. She and her husband became known as ""Ma"" and ""Pa"" Ferguson. Her campaign slogan was, ""Two Governors for the Price of One.

State House Press is launching a new series of Texas biographies aimed at students in the fourth grade. The series focuses on important, but perhaps lesser known, Texans and their contributions to Texas history. The first two books in the series look at Henrietta King, matriarch of the King Ranch family, and Mirabeau B. Lamar, second president of the Republic of Texas. They are among the personalities whose names appear on study guides for the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills test taken by all children in the fourth grade. Written by noted Texas children's author Judy Alter, the biographies are concisely presented in language that can be understood by fourth graders but also enjoyed by older readers. West Texas artist Patrick Messersmith illustrates the books with compelling black and white sketches. The books are designed to be inviting and approachable to readers of any age, with extra spacing between lines to enhance readability and creative use of informative side-bar material. ""The Stars of Texas"" Series is a natural fit for State House Press, an imprint of the McWhiney Foundation, whose mission is to promote and encourage the study of history.