Texas, Wisconsin

Texas is a town in Marathon County, Wisconsin, United States. It is part of the Wausau, Wisconsin Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 1,615 at the 2010 census. The unincorporated community of Granite Heights is located in the town.

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 45.1 square miles (116.7 km²), of which 44.6 square miles (115.5 km²) is land and 0.5 square miles (1.2 km²), or 1.02%, is water.

Demographics

As of the census of 2000, there were 1,703 people, 608 households, and 493 families residing in the town. The population density was 38.2 people per square mile (14.7/km²). There were 625 housing units at an average density of 14.0 per square mile (5.4/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 97.06% White, 0.82% African American, 0.18% Native American, 1.23% Asian, 0.18% from other races, and 0.53% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 0.23% of the population.

There were 608 households out of which 34.5% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 71.2% were married couples living together, 6.3% had a female householder with no husband present, and 18.9% were non-families. 16.0% of all households were made up of individuals and 7.1% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.80 and the average family size was 3.14.

Texas

Texas /ˈtɛksəs/ (Spanish: Texas or Tejas [ˈtexas]) is a state in the United States of America. It is the second most populous and second largest state by area in the US. Geographically located in the south central part of the country, Texas shares an international border with Mexico to the south and borders the states of New Mexico to the west, Oklahoma to the north, Arkansas to the northeast, and Louisiana to the east. Texas has an area of 268,820 square miles (696,200 km²) and a growing population of over 27.5 million residents (July 2015).

Houston is the largest city in Texas and the fourth-largest in the United States, while San Antonio is the second largest in the state and seventh largest in the United States. Dallas–Fort Worth and Greater Houston are the fourth and fifth largest United States metropolitan statistical areas, respectively. Other major cities include Austin (the state capital) and El Paso. Texas is nicknamed the Lone Star State to signify Texas as a former independent republic, and as a reminder of the state's struggle for independence from Mexico. The "Lone Star" can be found on the Texan state flag and on the Texan state seal. The origin of the state name, Texas, is from the word, "Tejas", which means 'friends' in the Caddo language.

The Texas (locomotive)

Western & Atlantic Railroad #49 "Texas" is a 4-4-0 "American" type steam locomotive built in 1856 for the Western & Atlantic Railroad by Danforth, Cooke & Co.. The Texas is widely known for being involved in the Great Locomotive Chase during the American Civil War as the engine that successfully pursued the General locomotive after it was stolen by Union saboteurs in an attempt to ruin the Confederate rail system. The locomotive is currently preserved at the Atlanta Cyclorama building within Grant Park in Atlanta, Georgia, and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. It will be restored and relocated to the Atlanta History Center in 2016.

Antebellum

The Texas was built in October 1856 for the Western & Atlantic Railroad by locomotive manufacturer Danforth, Cooke and Company in Paterson, New Jersey. It was subsequently shipped from Paterson to the Port of Savannah, traveled the Georgia Rail Road & Banking Company and Macon & Western Railroad, before finally being delivered to the W&A headquarters in Atlanta that same year.

Texas Homecare

Texas Homecare was a chain of DIY stores in the United Kingdom and Ireland, that operated from 1972 until 1999.

History

Texas Homecare was established in 1972, by Manny, Sydney and Gerald Fogel, who had previously founded the high street specialist paint and wallpaper chain Home Charm. Taking their lead from America, they revolutionised the United Kingdom DIY market, with the introduction of the 'DIY shed' style outlet. Mervyn Fogel, co-founder and managing director for over 25 years, had a vision of turning the small family business into a DIY retail empire.

Texas specialised in higher volume, lower margin DIY products. The company had been adversely affected, by a recession and depressed housing market.

Acquisition

With its acquisition, Homebase hoped to hold around 10% of the total DIY market in the United Kingdom. In May 1995, it was announced that only 26 Texas stores were to close, with limited redundancies. Sainsbury's found that full conversion to the Homebase format was an investment worth making, and allowed £50 million for the task.

Wisconsin (statue)

The Wisconsin is a statue on top of the Wisconsin Capitol Building created by Daniel Chester French.

History

The Wisconsin statue on the dome was sculpted during 1913-1914 by Daniel Chester French of New York.

The commission to create the statue of Wisconsin on the top of the dome was originally promised to Helen Farnsworth Mears, originally of Wisconsin. When Daniel Chester French agreed to produce the finial figure, the commission was switched to him.

Description

This work, often referred to as the "Golden Lady", consists of an allegorical figure reminiscent of Athena, dressed in Greek garb, her right arm outstretched to symbolize the state motto, "Forward", and wearing a helmet topped by a badger, the Wisconsin state totem.

The figure's left hand holds a globe with an eagle perched on top. Across the eagle's chest is a large W, for Wisconsin, a detail hard to discern.

Wisconsin is 15 ft 5 in (4.70 m) tall and weighs 3 short tons (2.7 t).

The lady is also in a mural in the House of Representatives.

ABC Supply Wisconsin 250

The ABC Supply Wisconsin 250 at Milwaukee IndyFest Presented by the Metro Milwaukee Honda Dealers is an IndyCar Series race held at the Milwaukee Mile in West Allis, Wisconsin.

History

Open wheel racing at the track dates back to 1937. AAA sanctioned races in 1937–1939, 1941, and 1946–1955. The track was paved in 1954.

USAC sanctioned Championship car races from 1956–1979. In 1980, the race switched to a CART/Champ Car race, and continued through 2006. IndyCar started holding races at the track in 2004, and thus for a brief time from 2004-2006, the track hosted both a Champ Car race (June) and an IndyCar race (August).

Starting in 2007, IndyCar became the lone event. The race was put on hiatus for 2010, stemming from management difficulties regarding payment of sanctioning fees. In 2011, the race returned and continues to be held.

Race scheduling

For most years starting in 1949, Milwaukee traditionally hosted the first race following the Indianapolis 500. From 1947 to 1982, Milwaukee generally hosted two races, the first race right after Indy in June, and the second in August or September. The latter sometimes in the days surrounding the Wisconsin State Fair.

Wisconsin Highway 71

State Trunk Highway 71 (often called Highway 71, STH 71 or WIS 71) is a state highway in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It runs in a diagonal southeast-northwest direction in southwest Wisconsin from Elroy to Melrose.

Highway 71, as originally laid out, ran from Elroy easterly to Mauston, and was at one time extended to a terminus near the Wisconsin River. In the mid-1950s a new bridge was built over the Wisconsin River, which connected Highway 71 with Highway 135 in Adams County, and minor realignments were made to accommodate this connection. The entire stretch from Elroy to US Highway 51 east of Oxford was then redesignated part of Highway 82, as it remains today, and Hwy 71 was cut back to its current eastern terminus at Highway 80/82 in Elroy. A short stub of the old roadway between Mauston and the Wisconsin River remains designated as "Old Hwy 71", now under local control.

References