Grab your boots and your best barbecue opinion, because this Texas trivia set is bigger than a roadside belt buckle.
We are roaming from ancient rock art and Republic-era history to spaceflight, football, music, and the mysteries of a proper kolache.
Deep in the Map of Texas
Q: What is the capital of Texas?
A: Austin.
Q: Which city is the most populous in Texas?
A: Houston.
Q: What nickname appears on Texas license plates and welcome signs?
A: The Lone Star State.
Q: Which river forms much of the border between Texas and Mexico?
A: The Rio Grande.
Q: Which river forms part of Texas's border with Oklahoma?
A: The Red River.
Q: What is the largest natural lake in Texas?
A: Caddo Lake.
Q: What is the highest point in Texas?
A: Guadalupe Peak.
Q: Which national park contains Guadalupe Peak?
A: Guadalupe Mountains National Park.
Q: What enormous region covers much of the Texas Panhandle?
A: The Llano Estacado, or Staked Plains.
Q: Which Gulf borders the Texas coast?
A: The Gulf of Mexico.
Q: What island protects much of the southern Texas coast and includes a national seashore?
A: Padre Island.
Q: Which Texas city sits at the western tip of the state on the Rio Grande?
A: El Paso.
Q: How many states share a land border with Texas?
A: Four.
Q: What is the second-largest U.S. state by area?
A: Texas.
Q: Which major U.S. highway runs roughly east to west through El Paso, San Antonio, and Houston?
A: Interstate 10.
Flags, Flowers, and State Symbols
Q: What single shape gives the Texas flag its nickname?
A: A star.
Q: What three colors appear on the Texas flag?
A: Red, white, and blue.
Q: What is the Texas state flower?
A: The bluebonnet.
Q: What is the Texas state large mammal?
A: The Texas longhorn.
Q: What is the Texas state small mammal?
A: The nine-banded armadillo.
Q: What is the Texas state bird?
A: The northern mockingbird.
Q: What tree is the Texas state tree?
A: The pecan.
Q: What pepper is the Texas state pepper?
A: The jalapeño.
Q: What dish was named the official state dish of Texas in 1977?
A: Chili.
Q: What is the official state sport of Texas?
A: Rodeo.
Q: What gemstone is the Texas state gem?
A: Texas blue topaz.
Q: What flying mammal is officially recognized by Texas?
A: The Mexican free-tailed bat.
Q: What is the Texas state motto?
A: Friendship.
Q: The name Texas comes from a Caddo word often translated as what?
A: Friends or allies.
Q: What official song begins with the words “Texas, our Texas”?
A: “Texas, Our Texas.”
Missions, Revolution, and Republic
Q: Which European explorer mapped the Texas coast in 1519?
A: Alonso Álvarez de Pineda.
Q: Which French explorer established Fort Saint Louis in Texas in the 1680s?
A: René-Robert Cavelier, Sieur de La Salle.
Q: Which nation controlled Texas immediately before it became part of independent Mexico?
A: Spain.
Q: Who is often called the Father of Texas for leading Anglo-American settlement?
A: Stephen F. Austin.
Q: What 1835 clash is commonly considered the first battle of the Texas Revolution?
A: The Battle of Gonzales.
Q: What challenge was written on the famous Gonzales flag?
A: “Come and Take It.”
Q: At which former mission did defenders make a famous stand in 1836?
A: The Alamo.
Q: Which Mexican general led the army at the Alamo?
A: Antonio López de Santa Anna.
Q: What phrase became a rallying cry after the Alamo fell?
A: “Remember the Alamo!”
Q: Which battle secured Texan independence in April 1836?
A: The Battle of San Jacinto.
Q: Who commanded the Texan army at San Jacinto?
A: Sam Houston.
Q: What independent nation existed from 1836 to 1845?
A: The Republic of Texas.
Q: Who served as the first elected president of the Republic of Texas?
A: Sam Houston.
Q: In what year did Texas join the United States?
A: 1845.
Q: What number state was Texas when it entered the Union?
A: The 28th.
Cattle Trails, Oil Booms, and Big Business
Q: What term for an unbranded calf comes from Texas rancher Samuel Maverick's surname?
A: Maverick.
Q: Which famous cattle trail ran from Texas to railheads in Kansas?
A: The Chisholm Trail.
Q: What term described cowboys who drove herds north to market?
A: Drovers.
Q: Which South Texas ranch is one of the largest ranches in the world?
A: King Ranch.
Q: What 1901 oil discovery near Beaumont launched a major Texas oil boom?
A: Spindletop.
Q: What spectacularly flowing oil well is known as a gusher?
A: A well that erupts oil under natural pressure.
Q: Which Houston-based energy company collapsed in a notorious 2001 accounting scandal?
A: Enron.
Q: Which city is nicknamed the Energy Capital of the World?
A: Houston.
Q: What enormous oil-producing region stretches across West Texas and southeastern New Mexico?
A: The Permian Basin.
Q: Which convenience-store chain began in Dallas in 1927?
A: 7-Eleven.
Q: Which airline has its headquarters in Dallas and began as a Texas carrier?
A: Southwest Airlines.
Q: Which computer company was founded by Michael Dell in Austin?
A: Dell Technologies.
Q: Which Texas grocery chain is commonly known by three initials?
A: H-E-B.
Q: What animal appears on the logo of Buc-ee's?
A: A beaver.
Q: Which soft drink was created in Waco in the 1880s?
A: Dr Pepper.
Cities, Buildings, and Roadside Legends
Q: What San Antonio attraction follows the banks of its namesake river below street level?
A: The River Walk.
Q: What 750-foot observation tower was built for HemisFair '68 in San Antonio?
A: The Tower of the Americas.
Q: Which Dallas plaza was the site of President John F. Kennedy's assassination?
A: Dealey Plaza.
Q: What Dallas tower is topped by a glowing geodesic sphere?
A: Reunion Tower.
Q: Which Fort Worth district preserves the city's cattle-trading heritage?
A: The Fort Worth Stockyards.
Q: What Austin street is famous for live music venues and nightlife?
A: Sixth Street.
Q: What pink-granite building is the seat of Texas government?
A: The Texas State Capitol.
Q: What outdoor art installation near Amarillo features ten buried automobiles?
A: Cadillac Ranch.
Q: Which city is home to the Magnolia Market at the Silos?
A: Waco.
Q: What Galveston mansion is named for the lawyer who commissioned it in the 1890s?
A: Bishop's Palace.
Q: Which city hosts the annual South by Southwest festival?
A: Austin.
Q: What giant amusement complex sits between Dallas and Fort Worth in Arlington?
A: Six Flags Over Texas.
Q: What do the “six flags” in that park's name represent?
A: The six nations whose flags have flown over Texas.
Q: Which city is home to Texas A&M University?
A: College Station.
Q: Which Gulf Coast city was devastated by a deadly hurricane in 1900?
A: Galveston.
Deserts, Caves, and Wild Texas
Q: Which national park protects the Big Bend of the Rio Grande?
A: Big Bend National Park.
Q: What desert covers much of far West Texas?
A: The Chihuahuan Desert.
Q: What mountain range rises within Big Bend National Park?
A: The Chisos Mountains.
Q: Which huge spring-fed swimming pool sits in Balmorhea State Park?
A: San Solomon Springs pool.
Q: Which underground attraction near San Antonio features a massive cave system?
A: Natural Bridge Caverns.
Q: What limestone region west of Austin is known for springs, caves, and clear rivers?
A: The Edwards Plateau.
Q: What aquifer supplies water to San Antonio and important springs?
A: The Edwards Aquifer.
Q: Which river winds along the southern boundary of Big Bend National Park?
A: The Rio Grande.
Q: What pink granite dome is a popular hiking destination in the Hill Country?
A: Enchanted Rock.
Q: Which canyon in the Panhandle is often called the Grand Canyon of Texas?
A: Palo Duro Canyon.
Q: What endangered bird nests in central Texas juniper-oak woodlands?
A: The golden-cheeked warbler.
Q: Which sea turtle nests at Padre Island and is the world's smallest sea turtle species?
A: The Kemp's ridley.
Q: What nighttime spectacle draws crowds to Austin's Congress Avenue Bridge?
A: Mexican free-tailed bats emerging to feed.
Q: What thorny tree common in Texas is known for its long bean pods?
A: Mesquite.
Q: What prickly plant produces edible pads called nopales?
A: The prickly pear cactus.
Music, Movies, and Texas Flavor
Q: Which country music legend from Abbott recorded “On the Road Again”?
A: Willie Nelson.
Q: Which “Queen of Tejano Music” grew up in Corpus Christi?
A: Selena Quintanilla.
Q: Which Houston-born superstar released the album Cowboy Carter?
A: Beyoncé.
Q: Which Lubbock native helped shape rock and roll with the Crickets?
A: Buddy Holly.
Q: Which blues guitarist from Dallas recorded “Pride and Joy”?
A: Stevie Ray Vaughan.
Q: What Austin television program has showcased live music since 1974?
A: Austin City Limits.
Q: What dance hall opened in Gruene in 1878 and remains a Texas music landmark?
A: Gruene Hall.
Q: What style of music blends Mexican and European influences and is closely associated with South Texas?
A: Tejano.
Q: Which 1956 film starring Elizabeth Taylor and James Dean follows a Texas ranching family?
A: Giant.
Q: Which television drama made the question “Who shot J.R.?” a pop-culture sensation?
A: Dallas.
Q: What smoked cut of beef is the signature of Central Texas barbecue?
A: Brisket.
Q: What Czech pastry became a beloved Texas road-trip snack?
A: Kolache.
Q: What savory sausage-filled pastry is often mistakenly called a kolache in Texas?
A: A klobasnek.
Q: What corn-chip dish is traditionally made in the bag with chili and toppings?
A: Frito pie.
Q: What puffy fried pastry is a Tex-Mex restaurant favorite?
A: The sopapilla.
Space, Sports, and Famous Firsts
Q: Which NASA center is home to Mission Control?
A: Johnson Space Center.
Q: What Texas city receives the first word in the famous phrase “Houston, we've had a problem”?
A: Houston.
Q: Which Texas-born president was in office during the Apollo 11 moon landing?
A: Lyndon B. Johnson.
Q: Which aircraft engineer from Texas developed the first successful integrated circuit?
A: Jack Kilby.
Q: Which Houston surgeon pioneered the use of Dacron grafts to repair blood vessels?
A: Michael DeBakey.
Q: What NFL team plays at AT&T Stadium in Arlington?
A: The Dallas Cowboys.
Q: What NFL team plays its home games in Houston?
A: The Houston Texans.
Q: Which NBA team plays in San Antonio?
A: The Spurs.
Q: Which NBA team is named for Houston's connection to space exploration?
A: The Houston Rockets.
Q: Which MLB team won its first World Series title in 2017?
A: The Houston Astros.
Q: Which MLB team plays in Arlington?
A: The Texas Rangers.
Q: What college football rivalry trophy goes to the winner of Texas versus Oklahoma?
A: The Golden Hat.
Q: What hand sign is associated with the University of Texas Longhorns?
A: Hook 'em Horns.
Q: Which golfer from Texas was nicknamed “The Merry Mex”?
A: Lee Trevino.
Q: Which boxer born in Marshall became a two-time world heavyweight champion?
A: George Foreman.
That's a Texas-Sized Score
If you wrangled all 120, go ahead and tip your hat like a trivia-night champion. Keep the fun rolling with our famous people trivia and decades trivia.
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