Statehood: December 29, 1845 (28th State) State Song: Texas, Our Texas (1929) State Bird: Mockingbird (1927) State Tree: Pecan (1919) State Flower: Bluebonnet (1901) State Fish: Guadalupe Bass (1989) State Seashell: Lightning Whelk (1987) State Dish: Chili (1977) State Folk Dance: Square Dance (1991) State Fruit: Texas Red Grapefruit (1993) State Gem: Texas Blue Topaz (1969) State Gemstone Cut: Lone Star Cut (1977) State Grass: Sideoats Grass (1971) State Reptile: Horned Lizard (1993) State Stone: Petrified Palmwood (1969) State Plant: Prickly Pear Cactus State Insect: Monarch Butterfly State Pepper: Jalapeno Pepper State Mammal: Longhorn State Small Mammal: Armadillo State Flying Mammal: Mexican Free-tailed Bat State Nickname: The Lone Star State State Motto: Friendship Highest Point: The highest point in Texas is Guadalupe Peak at 8,749 feet above sea level. Lowest Point: The lowest point in Texas is sea level where Texas meets the Gulf of Mexico . Largest cities: Houston, 2,242,193; San Antonio, 1,351,305; Dallas, 1,279,910; Austin, 757,688; Fort Worth, 703,073; El Paso, 613,190; Arlington, 374,417; Corpus Christi, 286,462; Plano, 267,480; Garland, 218,577. Here are some little known, very interesting facts about Texas. 1. Beaumont to El Paso - 742 miles 2. Beaumont to Chicago - 770 miles 3. El Paso is closer to California than to Dallas. 4. World's first rodeo was in Pecos, July 4, 1883. 5. The Flagship Hotel in Galveston is the only hotel in North America built over water. 6. The Heisman Trophy was named after John William Heisman who was the first full-time coach at Rice University in Houston . 7. Brazoria County has more species of birds than any other area in North America. 8. Aransas Wildlife Refuge is the winter home of North America's only remaining flock of whooping cranes. 9. Jalapeno jelly originated in Lake Jackson in 1978. 10. The worst natural disaster in U.S . history was in 1900, caused by a hurricane, in which over 8,000 lives were lost on Galveston Island. 11. The first word spoken from the moon, July 20, 1969, was " Houston ." 12. King Ranch in South Texas is larger than Rhode Island. 13. Tropical Storm Claudette brought a U.S. rainfall record of 43" in 24 hours in and around Alvin in July of 1979. 14. Texas is the only state to enter the U.S. by TREATY, (known as the Constitution of 1845 by the Republic of Texas to enter the Union ) instead of by annexation. This allows the Texas Flag to fly at the same height as the U.S. Flag, and may divide into 5 states. 15. A Live Oak tree near Fulton is estimated to be 1500 years old. 16. Caddo Lake is the only natural lake in the state. 17. Dr Pepper was invented in Waco in 1885. There is no period in Dr Pepper. 18. Texas has had six capital cities: Washington-on-the Brazos, Harrisburg, Galveston, Velasco, West Columbia and Austin. 19. The Capitol Dome in Austin stands taller than the Capitol Building in Washington DC (by 7 feet). 20. The name " Texas " comes from the Hasini Indian word "tejas" meaning friends. Tejas is not Spanish for Texas. 21. The State Mascot is the Armadillo (an interesting bit of trivia about the armadillo is they always have four babies. They have one egg, which splits into four, and they either have four males or four females.). 22. The first domed stadium in the U.S. was the Astrodome in Houston.