Recommended Reading and Links

Books

Burrough Bryan. The Big Rich: The Rise and Fall of the Greatest Texas Oil Fortunes. Penguin Books. 2009

Bush, George, W. Out of Many, One: Portraits of America’s Immigrants. Crown Publishing. 2021
Our former President began painting after his retirement from public office. What he has created is a wonderful tribute to those who were not born in this country but chose it. Some came from incredibly difficult situations in their native countries and have overcome great adversity to become Americans. President Bush’s product is an amazing testimony from a grateful American.

Bush, George, W. Portraits of Courage: A Commander in Chief’s Tribute to America’s Warriors. Crown Publishing. 2017
Stunning book of portraits featuring returning warriors that President Bush painted. This is Bush’s first group of portraits collected into a book complete with the brief biographies written by the President. Perfect complement for teaching honor to those who served and sacrificed for our country from one who sent them abroad to do it. A must read.

Campbell, Randolph B. Gone to Texas. Oxford University Press. Third Edition, 2018.
Campbell writes the history from a geographical perspective and fairly describes all groups of people who chose to inhabit what are now the boundaries of Texas.

Carlson, Laurie. More Than Moccasins. Chicago Review Press. 1994

Carter, Cecile Elkins. Caddo Indians: Where We Come From. University of Oklahoma Press. 1995.
I found this book written in a way that explained the prehistoric record in archeology and the historic record in written records. The author has a Caddoan ancestry and used stories of real people to explain Caddoan traditions and their trying to understand European traditions. Carter gives detail written in such an engaging way that the book is difficult to put down. Highly recommended for personal development and use in the high school classroom.

Cochran, John M. Dallas County. Service Publishing Company, Dallas Texas, 1928
This rather personal volume was commissioned by the Dallas Historical Society by the author who had personal ties to the people and events described in the book. It is racist and placating to white settlers in Dallas County. Cochran does a fair job describing the work the people put into the infrastructure of commerce, transportation, and education. Accessed at the Texas Collection, Baylor University.

Davis, Lucile. The Caddo of Texas: The Library of Native Americans. The Rosen Publishing Group. 2003.
Small children’s picture book. Helpful with elementary aged students.

Foner, Eric. Our Fragile Freedoms. W.W. Norton and Co. 2025
Great Book! Pulitzer Prize winner Eric Foner put together a series of essays and book reviews from the entirety of his career. It is arranged chronologically and topically dealing with books on slavery, Civil War, Reconstruction, Civil Rights and where we are today. This is a breathtaking ride through tumultuous American history and a lesson and how we survived and can be better. Dr. Foner has several books in the Civil War and Reconstruction era. All are wonderful reads and highly recommended. A great companion book is Jon Mecham’s The Soul of America in which Meacham covers divisive eras in American history and concludes that hope and decency usually triumph over despondency and division.

Graves, John. Hard Scrabble. University of Texas Press, Austin, Texas, 2016.
Originally published in 1974 by Alfred Knopf. Great piece of classic Texana. Hard work, stubborn nature, unwilling to change course, beat the odds for success. Graves describes his development of a ranch in small Somervell, County. He gets advice from friends but continues to learn things the hard way. Graves lived at the ranch until his death in 2013.

Graves, John. Goodbye to a River. Knopf Doubleday. 1960.
Original author work as he describes his adventure down the Brazos River. Combines personal narrative and conservation ideals. Another Texas classic.

Gwynne, S.C. Empire of the Summer Moon: Quanah Parker and the Rise and Fall of the Comanches, the Most Powerful Indian Tribe in American History.
Great history of another Native People in North Texas. Although I choose to dive into Caddo culture for this project, the story of the Parkers is iconic Texas history and deserves attention at any grade level.

Johnson, Benjamin Heber. Texas. An American History. Yale University Press. 2025
New, short volume of Texas history. Takes a big state and creates bite sized stories that are easy to digest. Another great recommendation from Texas Monthly Editor In Chief Ross McCammon.

Kissock, Heathe and Small, Rachel. Caddo: American Indian Art and Culture. Weigl Publishers Inc. 2011.
Small children’s book

Lehman, Katherine, editor. Interacting with History: Teaching with Primary Sources. American Library Association, 2014.

McMurty, Larry. Lonesome Dove. Simon and Schuster. 1985.
First published in 1985 this story chronicles two Texas Rangers. This story was made into a TV mini-series in 1989 and continues to entice viewers and readers alike. Recently Texas Monthly collected these unique essays regarding different aspects of the book and its legacy over the years. https://www.texasmonthly.com/the-stand-up-desk/texas-book-club-lonesome-dove-guide/

Michener, James, A. Texas: A Novel. Dial Press Trade Paperback Edition. 2014
Michener weaves historical facts with his fictional characters into a large panoramic story. Not a Texan, Michener claims to write the book is better to have an outsider viewpoint. The book is hefty, more than 1400 pages. Maybe one to assign to that student who needs more to do and offer a lot of extra credit. It would be a worthwhile assignment!

National Archives Trust Fund Board. Teaching with Documents: 1880-1929. ABC-CLIO. 2002
NARA developed this series of four books divided into dated portions. It used documents from NARA, has detailed historical perspectives and an activity designed for each object. Helpful if you are using that object but can be adaptable to other assets.

Old Red Museum of Dallas County History & Culture. Dallas, Texas Old Red Museum of Dallas County History & Culture: Exhibition Catalog. 2007.
Beautiful, color photos of the exhibits at the former Old Red Museum in Dallas. The building is once again being used as a courthouse, so the exhibits are now immortalized. Part of the Texas collection at Baylor University.

Perttula, Timothy K. The Caddo Nation: Archaeological and Ethnohistoric Perspectives. University of Texas Press, 1992.
Academic work that could be used as an archaeological reference for high school students. Maps pp. 34-35, 48. Population chart p. 86, 167. Perttula has great data that has been used by other authors such as Carter (see above).

Porter, Katherine, Anne. Pale Horse, Pale Rider Three Short Novels. Harcourt Brace & Company. First published 1939.
Great short story literature.

Smith, F. Todd. The Caddo Indians: Tribes at the Convergence of Empires 1542-1854. Texas A&M University, Centennial Series of the Association of Former Students, no 56. 1995.
Academic work but still a readable text. Explains relationships Caddo had with European explorers, traders and settlers. Great maps.

Texas Monthly, eds. Being Texan: Essays, recipes, and advice for the Lone Star Way of Life. New York, NY: Harper Wave, an imprint of Harper Collins Publishers, 2021.
This book is a little bit of everything; creative essays, lost stories, tall tales and a whole lot of fun. It is a great resource for initiating topics, great quotes, and finding something unique.

Thomas, Julie. Teaching Primary Source Research Skills to 21st-Century Learners. Society of American Archivists. 2024.

Veccia, Susan, H. Uncovering Our History: Teaching with Primary Sources. American Library Association. 2004.
This book is truly amazing. It has so many tips for using any document-selection, copyright consideration, etc. She reminds us that not everything is digitized and that it never will be given the amount of time it takes for an archivist to prepare things for online access. But more things are added every day. Veccia gives a step-by-step guide to finding and using online primary documents. Great choice for adding to your professional library.

Websites

Caddo Mounds History
Texas Historical Commission

Caddo Mounds State Historic Site
Texas Historical Commission

Periodicals

Texas Monthly
Editor In Chief Ross McCammon, always has amazing book recommendations for Texana and current Texas happenings. Always a good read every month

Museums

Museum of the Red River
George W. Bush Presidential Museum and Library
George H.W. Bush Presidential Museum and Library
Dwight D. Eisenhower Presidential Museum and Library
Harry S. Truman Presidential Museum and Library
Dallas Museum of Art
National Medal of Honor Museum
Texas Heritage Museum