DRT’s 43rd President General
Karen R. Thompson has become the 43rd President General of The Daughters of The Republic of Texas. A native of Austin, Texas, Mrs. Thompson is only the second President General to hail from Austin in the 120 year history of the DRT. The first was Jane Oliphant Webb (1889-1960). Mrs. Thompson was born during Mrs. Webb's term in office (1943-1945).
Karen R. Thompson is a 5th generation Austinite and has written many books on Texas and Texas History such as Scenes of American-Austin, Round Rock, Texas - From Cowboys to Computers, and others. She attended the University of Texas at Austin and St. Edward's University after graduating from Leander High School in 1962. After working more than two decades with the I.R.S., and retiring in 2004, Mrs. Thompson has not slowed down her pace at all. Mrs. Thompson has been a professional genealogist and teacher for many years and has been active in civic and community affairs. A long-time member of The Daughters of The Republic of Texas and Williamson
DRT Announces Texas History Contest Topics for 2012
The Daughters of the Republic of Texas (DRT) has recently announced the 2012 topics for their annual Texas History Essay Contest for students in the fourth and seventh grades. The topic for fourth grade students is “Bigfoot Wallace or Susanna Dickinson, Survivor of the Alamo.” The topic for seventh grade students is “Battle of San Jacinto.”
As part of its mission to perpetuate the memory and spirit of the men and women who achieved and maintained the independence of Texas” and to encourage historical research into the earliest records of Texas, especially those relating to the Revolution of 1835 and the events which followed, DRT has offered annual essay contests for fourth grade and seventh grade students (public, private, or home schooled) who are studying Texas history for the past 30 years. The winners and up to two additional guests are invited to attend the DRT Convention and be guests of DRT at the Historical Evening Dinner in Austin, Texas, in May. Each winner will be presented with a monetary award of $300, a medal, a flag flown over The Alamo, and a certificate.
DRT Celebrates the 175th Anniversary of Texas Independence!
Join DRT in celebrating the 175th Anniversary of Texas Independence Day!
On March 2, while the Alamo was under siege in San Antonio by Santa Anna’s army of Mexico, the delegates to the Convention of 1836, at the town of Washington, declared their independence from Mexico and "that the people of Texas are now part of a FREE, SOVEREIGN, and INDEPENDENT republic."
In 2011, Texas will commemorate the 175th Anniversary of Texas Independence with a variety of events—beginning with the Siege of the Alamo Candlelight Tour in San Antonio on February 26, and leading to the Battle of San Jacinto at La Porte on April 21. For more information on these and other commemorative events, please visit the Texas Independence 175 Events Calendar website.
Texas Statehood Day
Texas Independence Celebration Event
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