Thursday, November 30, 2006

Ennis, Texas



Ennis, Texas is famous for the bluebonnets that blanket the hills around the town every spring, drawing about 50,000 visitors each year to an annual festival during the third weekend of April. The Ennis Garden Club has laid out 42 miles of trails that the Texas Legislature named "The Official Bluebonnet Trail of Texas." The club provides free maps of trails through fertile farmlands and rolling hills where bluebonnets cover miles of grasslands. The club members provide information on the best areas for viewing the bluebonnets and other wildflowers. The bluebonnet was named for its striking resemblance to the sunbonnets of pioneer women.

Bluebonnets are not the only source of pride in Ennis, which celebrates its Czech heritage each Memorial Day with the National Polka Festival. It is the state flower of Texas for which Ennis is best known. The sweet-smelling blooms were beloved by the American Indians long before the Czech settlers arrived. A Comanche legend about the origin of the bluebonnets tells of the tribe’s struggle with starvation, cold, and disease. The Great Spirit told the chieftains that their most valued and cherished possessions should be burned and scattered to the four winds as an offering. A little American Indian princess overheard the council and sacrificed her beautiful doll with a headdress from a blue jay. The next morning, where the ashes had fallen, there was a beautiful spread of blue flowers the same shade as the blue jay’s feather. Regardless of how the flowers came to Texas, the bonnet-shaped blooms are a state treasure, especially in Ennis.

To see how a Village Prints artist has preserved the historical heritage of Ennis, click on the Ennis, TX page. These prints make excellent gifts for all occasions--Christmas, birthdays, anniversaries, retirements, etc.

Tuesday, November 14, 2006

Marshall, Texas


Marshall, Texas has several famous sons and daughters. Lady Bird Johnson, wife of President Lyndon Baines Johnson, graduated from Marshall High School. Lady Bird got her nickname from a family maid who said she was as cute as a "Lady Bird." Lady Bird became famous for her work to encourage the planting of wildflowers along our nation's highways (see www.wildflower.org). George Edward Foreman, a former boxer, who was a world Heavyweight champion and an ordained Christian minister, was born in Marshall, Texas. George is probably most famous today for his "George Foreman Lean Mean Grilling Machine." Another famous son of Marshall is Huddie Ledbetter, a guitarist who wrote such famous songs as "Goodnight Irene"and “The Midnight Special." Journalist and television commentator, Bill Moyers, and football great, Y. A. Tittle, are two more famous sons of Marshall. To purchase this print of Marshall, TX, click here