East Texas

East Texas is a distinct cultural and geographic area in the U.S. state of Texas. There are various ways to define East Texas, but the least subjective is that it the area of Texas that is part of the Southeastern United States ecologically. More subjective is the cultural definition; East Texas has been described as the most culturally Southern area of Texas—although this can be offensive to other Texans who consider themselves Southerners—or that the region is not really part of Texas—which offends East Texans. Simply put, East Texas is the region of Texas that looks and feels more like Louisiana and Mississippi than it does South and West Texas.

Geography

According to the Handbook of Texas, the East Texas area "may be separated from the rest of Texas roughly by a line extending from the Red River in north central Lamar County southwestward to east central Limestone County and then southeastward to Galveston Bay", though some separate the Gulf Coast area into a separate region. This area includes all or parts of 49 counties, totalling almost 40,000 square miles (100,000 km²) and a population of almost 6 million.

Related Topics:
Handbook of Texas - Lamar County - Limestone County

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The geography is composed mainly of the Piney Woods, a mixed forest of deciduous and conifer flora. The Piney woods cover 23,500 square miles (61,000 km²) of gently rolling or hilly forested land. These woods are part of a much larger region of pine-hardwood forest that extends into Louisiana, Arkansas, and Oklahoma. The Piney Woods thin out as it nears the Gulf of Mexico. East Texas lies within the Gulf Coastal Plain and receives more rainfall, 35 to 50 inches, than the rest of Texas. The climate is mild and ranges from temperate to sub-tropical. In Houston the average January temperature is 50.4 ºF (10.2 ºC) and the average July temperature is 82.6 ºF (28.1 ºC), however Houston has slightly warmer winters than most of East Texas.

Related Topics:
Piney Woods - Forest - Deciduous - Conifer - Flora - Square mile - Pine - Hardwood - Louisiana - Arkansas - Oklahoma - Gulf of Mexico - Inches - Temperate - Sub-tropical

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The Sabine River and Trinity River are the major rivers in East Texas, but the Brazos River and Red River also flow through the region. The Brazos cuts through the southwest portion of the region while the Red River forms its northern border with Oklahoma. In East Texas and the rest of the South, small rivers and creeks collect into swamps called "Bayous" and merge with the surrounding forest. Bald cypress and Spanish moss are the dominate plants in Bayous. The most famous of these bayous are Cypress Bayou and Buffalo Bayou. Cypress Bayou surrounds the Big, Little, and Black Cypress rivers around Jefferson. They flow east into Caddo Lake and the adjoing wetlands cover the rim and islands of the lake. Most of Buffalo Bayou was cleared to create the Houston Ship Channel, the remaining portions of Buffalo Bayou are in Downtown Houston.

Related Topics:
Sabine River - Trinity River - Brazos River - Red River - Oklahoma - Bald cypress - Spanish moss - Cypress Bayou - Buffalo Bayou - Jefferson - Caddo Lake - Houston Ship Channel - Downtown Houston

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