The Battle of the Alamo

• The Alamo, in San Antonio, Texas, originally served as a home to missionaries and the Indians they converted during the 1700s. In the 1800s, the Spanish military moved in, when the former mission became home to revolutionaries and royalists during Mexico's battle for independence. The Alamo is seen as a symbol for heroes, where people fought and gave their lives despite insurmountable odds. Create your bulletin board and focus on the Alamo and the soldiers who struggled for liberty.
  
  

Oil

• Oil became one of Texas's largest industries in the early 20th century after an oil well burst and sent oil gushing 100 feet into the air. Oil fields are found throughout the state, but especially in north and east Texas. This newfound industry pushed the Lone Star State into the industrial age. Create your bulletin board to include how oil changed the lives of Texans in the early 20th century. Focus on how agriculture, once the leading industry, took a backseat to oil. However, with the industrial age and petroleum also came the railroad, which in turned helped farmers and ranchers, so agriculture, while falling by the wayside, was far from obsolete in Texas.
  
  

Drug War

• Texas is at ground zero for the drug war in the United States. El Paso, in the state's northwest corner, is directly across the border from Juarez, one of Mexico's most dangerous cities. The northwest isn't the only part of the border state that's in trouble; residents in McAllen -- at Texas's southern tip along the Rio Grande -- are becoming more and more fearful of drug cartels and the violence that comes with them, after gunmen stormed hotels in Monterrey. Build your bulletin board to focus on violence throughout Texas, and include information about U.S. border patrols.
  
  

Route 66

• The legendary Route 66 -- where many people got their kicks -- runs through the Texas Panhandle. One of the biggest, well-known cities along the route is Amarillo, which lies about midway between Oklahoma and New Mexico. Also along the route are ghost towns, or towns that have long been abandoned or extremely sparsely populated, often due to shifts in where the interstates are built. Create your bulletin board to show the legend of Route 66, including people who traveled it and what towns once were booming but now are no more than a general store and gas station, like Alanreed. Alanreed was a booming small town on old Route 66 before Interstate 40 was built, taking away traffic that brought money to the town. This town, once home to about 500 people and a handful of businesses, schools and churches, now only has about 50 residents and one business still in operation.