Here are some little known and very interesting facts about Texas and things Texan: Beaumont to El Paso: 742 miles Beaumont to Chicago: 770 miles El Paso is 14 miles closer to San Diego than to Houston World's first rodeo was in Pecos, July 4, 1883. The Flagship Hotel in Galveston is the only hotel in North America built over water. The Heisman Trophy was named after John William Heisman who was the first full-time coach for Rice University in Houston. Brazoria County has more species of birds than any other area in North America. Jalapeno jelly originated in Lake Jackson in 1978. The worst natural disaster in U.S. history was in 1900 caused by a hurricane in which over 8000 lives were lost on Galveston Island. The first word spoken from the moon, July 20, 1969, was "Houston." King Ranch in South Texas is larger than Rhode Island. Tropical Storm Claudette brought a US. rainfall record of 43" in 24 hours in and around Alvin in July 1979. Texas is the only...