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DEBBI CHRISSINGER Destinations Unlimited Vacations
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WHY TOUR EUROPE while you can TOUR TEXAS
Texas is home to several famous European cities , ( in name only ).
Probably the best know is Paris , Texas . “ The Second Biggest Paris in the World ” is the current slogan for this County Seat .
Paris is also the official Crepe Myrtle Capital of Texas . A visit in July or August is unforgettable . One of the best sights is the Eiffel Tower . Where else can you see the 65- foot Eiffel Tower donned in a red cowboy hat ?
Put on your wooden shoes and head to Holland , Texas , named after early settler James R . Holland , who reportedly moved into the area in 1874 . His construction of a steam cotton gin in 1878 insured that the community would thrive . The town soon became a major cotton shipping point . Time to show off your “ Kilt ” and head to Edinburg . Originally named Chapin , until Mr . Chapin was tried for murdering a man in San Antonio . Propriety demanded a name change , and prominent businessman John Young named it after his birthplace of Edinburgh , Scotland in 1911 . Somewhere along the way , the “ h ” was dropped .
Opa ! - Athens , Texas , founded 1850 . Named for Athens , Greece , is the birthplace of the hamburger where it began on the courthouse square in the l880s when Fletcher Davis , who owned a
downtown cafe , invented the sandwich . The delicacy was so popular that in l904 a group of Athens businessmen raised enough money to send the inventor to the St . Louis World ’ s Fair , where the hamburger was introduced to the world .
Luck of the Irish - Dublin . was founded in 1854 by A . H . Dobkins and named in 1860 , probably for the warning cry , “ Double In ,” or for the capital of Ireland . Famous for the Dublin Dr Pepper Bottling Company - Sam Houston Prim ( 1863-1946 ) arrived in Dublin in 1891 with $ 680 worth of bottling equipment and purchased property to house his bottling works . Prim bottled Dr Pepper , along with other products , under an informal agreement until 1925 , when he formally chose a 44-mile radius Dr Pepper distribution territory centered on Dublin -- an area that remains as the company ’ s territory today .
At the time of Prim ’ s death , Dr Pepper executives noted that he had bottled the soft drink longer than any other individual . The company has remained in operation since that time , making it the oldest Dr Pepper bottler in the world .
Naples came into being with the arrival of the Texas and St . Louis Railroad in 1880 . It was originally called Belden , but the post office feared it would be confused with Belton , Texas . The new name Naples was chosen from a list submitted by residents in 1895 .
Other locations to get your “ Texas Passport ” stamped include such places as ; Florence , Moscow , Stockholm ( a true Texas Ghost Town ) and Geneva , which became a ghost town and sat for decades until it was flooded with the construction of Lake Livingston in the 1980s . To the east is Nederland , where the first Dutch settler arrived in 1897 , naming it after the Netherlands .
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